Society for the Teaching of Psychology E-xcellence in Teaching

Beyond One-Size-Fits-All: How to Adapt Embodied Learning for Different Students

Wed, 11 Feb 2026 17:41:04 GMT

Icy (Yunyi) Zhang
University of Wisconsin-Madison

For centuries, philosophers and researchers have argued that our understanding of concepts is grounded in our physical experiences—how we see, touch, and interact with our physical environment (Hume, 1938; Locke, 1948; Quine & Ullian, 1978). Yet, traditional education often does the opposite, prioritizing symbols, equations, and formal knowledge before hands-on experience (Nathan, 2012). While this formalism-first approach works for some learners when they learn certain concepts, it assumes that students can intuitively understand abstract ideas without direct experience, which is often a false assumption (Goldstone et al., 2008; Martin, 2009). In fact, students often memorize facts and procedures without fully grasping how they apply beyond the original learning contexts. This is especially true in complex fields with many abstract concepts, where learners may understand high-level ideas but struggle to connect them to different representations or real-world problems (Lau & Yuen, 2008; Nathan, 2012; West & Ross, 2002).

For instance, in the field of statistics and data science, the concept of randomness is foundational for understanding simulation-based approaches—such as permutation tests—and making statistical inferences based on those simulations. However, because randomness has no tangible or perceptible presence in the real world, students often fail to develop a meaningful understanding of it. Instead, they may resort to rote memorization by memorizing that shuffling breaks the relationship between two variables without really understanding what “breaking the relationship” means, which hinders their ability to interpret randomness-generated distributions or apply the concept of randomness to, for example, compare the sample statistics with the sampling distribution generated from permutation tests). Without these meaningful connections, applying knowledge in new situations becomes difficult (Bransford & Schwartz, 1999; Stigler et al., 2010). Learning through meaningful physical experience may be key to helping students develop a more transferable understanding of abstract concepts in complex domains. Numerous studies have designed and successfully demonstrated the efficacy of various embodied learning strategies that use direct physical movement, observing others perform movements, or mere mental simulation of the movements to improve how we learn and understand new concepts (e.g., Alibali & Nathan, 2018; Congdon, 2024; Zhang et al., 2024).

Why do embodied pedagogies, whether through learners physically performing actions or watching someone else performing the actions, work? Whether called embodied, enactive, ecological, embedded, or extended cognition, these perspectives of cognition suggest that we make sense of concepts through action and perception (Barsalou, 1999, 2008; Borghi & Pecher, 2011; Clark, 2008; Golonka & Wilson, 2012; Lakoff & Johnson, 2008). Interacting with ideas in a tangible way grounds abstract concepts in physical actions, making it easier to connect new concepts to prior knowledge and experience in the world (Barsalou, 1999). This sensorimotor foundation of the knowledge makes the knowledge representation more robust, meaningful and easier to transfer (Nathan & Alibali, 2021). For instance, many students have only a vague understanding of what data collection and a dataset actually is. Simply explaining these concepts abstractly can be challenging. Instead, having students manually collect and document real data—such as their classmates’ ages, heights, and favorite subjects—can make these ideas more concrete. By physically gathering and organizing information, students build a sensorimotor foundation of the concepts. This is true beyond teaching statistical concepts. For example when teaching psychological topics such as implicit bias, instead of simply defining the term, instructors can have students review and rank resumes that are identical in qualifications but differ only in identifying details like names or demographic cues. Working in groups, students can make decisions and then reflect on how subtle differences influenced their choices. In this way, students experience the concept through their own decision-making in a concrete context (that they are familiar with) rather than just memorizing its definition. These embodied experiences ground abstract ideas in real-world interactions, resulting in more robust and transferable knowledge.

In our work, we apply embodied learning theories to improve teaching and learning in the domain of statistics and data science. We chose this domain for two main reasons. First, teaching statistics and data science is notoriously challenging, whether it's helping students grasp specific concepts like probability distributions, sampling distributions, and confidence intervals (Zhang et al., 2025; Chance et al., 2004; Henriques, 2016), or develop intuitive understanding of simulation-based methods such as permutation and bootstrapping (Zhang et al., 2022). Research in this area can yield practical insights for improving instruction. Second, the abstract nature of these concepts makes them an ideal context for testing theoretical questions—specifically, how concrete embodied pedagogies can support the development of abstract understanding.

Our research suggests that grounding abstract concepts—such as randomness—in hands-on interactions with physical datasets can significantly enhance students' comprehension and ability to apply statistical inferences (Zhang et al., 2022, 2024). In one study, we designed an instructional video that introduced the concept of randomness through hands-on manipulations and compared it to a non-embodied instructional video (a control video created by screen-recording an instructor’s live-coding on a laptop), as illustrated in Figure 1 below.

Figure 1

Screenshots of the Two Versions of Instructional Videos

Although both videos covered the same content, the hands-on version featured a unique element: a pair of hands physically cutting and rearranging pieces of paper with data written on them to simulate the shuffle function in R, a widely used statistical programming language. This manual “shuffling” mirrors a familiar real-world action—shuffling a deck of cards to randomize their order—providing students with a sensorimotor grounding for the concept, even when merely observing the actions in the video. Through two lab studies, we found that students who first watched the hands-on video—before seeing the same process demonstrated on a larger dataset via computer simulation in a subsequent live-coding video—developed a deeper understanding of randomness compared to those who only watched two computer-simulated videos (Zhang et al., 2022).

These findings have important practical implications: live-coding to conduct computer simulations is an increasingly popular instructional pedagogy. Computer simulations can provide experts with a fast and efficient way to explore various statistical scenarios. However, because such simulations are highly complex perceptual objects, they can be confusing for novices who do not know what they are looking at (e.g., is this a sample or a sampling distribution?) nor where to look during a dynamic simulation (e.g. when the values are moving around during shuffling). Our findings suggest that some level of embodiment is needed to ground abstract computer simulations in more concrete and meaningful actions. For teachers, although developing and effectively implementing a hands-on demonstration in class can cost more instructional time and resources, they might still implement an embodied experience, whether through instructor-performing (Zhang et al., 2022) or student-performing (Congdon et al., 2018) to introduce an abstract concept in the classroom.

The effectiveness of embodied pedagogies have been well-researched in laboratory settings, but mastering complex real-world domains requires more extensive interaction with a broad array of interconnected concepts over longer periods of time than is typically offered in laboratory studies or a single classroom observation (Fries et al., 2021). Although we gain value from comparing an embodied intervention with a non-embodied intervention for all students as a whole, embodied pedagogies and also the learner population are far more heterogeneous than this all-or-none distinction. To provide more actionable insights for teachers,, we recognized the importance of moving beyond the question of whether a particular approach is effective for all learners. Instead, we ask how different types of embodied pedagogies impact learners with different levels of prior knowledge differently. This points to the necessity of a developmental perspective to better understand the role of embodied pedagogies in learning and why some embodied experiences fail to support abstract learning in some situations.

By developmental perspective, we mean that in addition to existing embodied learning theories that operate primarily at a cognitive level, we need theories at a different level: specifically, a learning theory about how different types of embodied pedagogies facilitate knowledge development over time. As educators, we know that students come into the classroom with different levels of prior knowledge. But how does that impact the way they learn best? We proposed and tested a cognitive developmental learning theory, named the Performing First Theory, which offers a simple yet powerful working framework of embodied learning. The Performing First Theory hypothesized that:

Students with lower prior knowledge will learn better when they actively perform hands-on activities. Since they don’t yet have a strong sensorimotor foundation, engaging in physical actions helps them build understanding from experience.
Students with higher prior knowledge will benefit more from observing these actions. Because they already have foundational knowledge, watching allows them to focus on making connections and applying knowledge in new ways.

We tested this idea using a longitudinal classroom design in a college-level introductory statistics course, where 227 college students were paired up and randomly assigned to one of two groups: (1) the perform group, in which students actively participated in hands-on activities, and (2) the observe group, in which students observed their partner doing hands-on activities. Take one of the week’s activities with the concept of the confidence interval as an example. Using the setup in Figure 2, the instructor began with a sample where the mean difference (labeled as b1) is 1.2 . Building on students' prior knowledge of sampling distributions, the instructor asked the performer to physically move the sampling distribution (color printed on a transparency paper) on the axis under different assumptions while the observer watched and provided feedback to the whole process. For instance, when β1=0, the performer moved the sampling distribution from its initial position (left of Figure 2) to a new position (right of Figure 2).

Figure 2

The Confidence Interval Part 1

How would you move the sampling distribution below if β1 = 0?

Initial position: the sampling distribution is at the sample b1 (β1 = 1.2) Ending position: the sampling distribution is at β1 = 0

The key idea is then introduced: determining the point where shifting the distribution further would make the observed value of b1=1.2 unlikely. This is visually shown on left of Figure 3, where the performer, figured out by physically interacting with the distribution, that moving the distribution too far left would place b1 in the unlikely green region. That threshold defines the lower bound of the confidence interval. Similarly, as illustrated in the right of Figure 3, the performer identifies the upper bound of the CI. The observer watched the whole process, providing verbal feedback.

Figure 3

The Confidence Interval Part 2

Move the sampling distribution to find the value of β1 such that if you move it any further, the sample b1 is no longer likely to come from this sampling distribution.

Finding the lower bond: if the sampling distribution is moved any further left, b1 will be considered unlikely Finding the upper bond: if the sampling distribution is moved any further right, b1 will be considered unlikely

An analysis of students’ midterm and final exam scores showed a significant interaction between prior knowledge and type of pedagogy in the hypothesized direction. Interestingly, by examining students’ self-rated factors and their performance on the summative assessments, we found that only self-rated prior knowledge—not other factors such as math anxiety or how well they had performed in math in previous classes—significantly moderated the effectiveness of the embodied pedagogies. Multilevel analysis of weekly tests supported the findings from the summative assessments, demonstrating that low-prior knowledge learners benefited more from physically performing the activities, whereas high-prior knowledge learners benefited more from observing the activities. Interestingly, whereas it is typical for students’ performance on a pretest to predict their performance after the learning intervention, it is only true for students in the observe group. For students in the perform group, there was no significant correlation between how they did before and after the intervention.

This study bridges an important gap between research and practices in the classroom: how should teachers implement embodied activities into classroom settings? These findings suggest that one-size-fits-all teaching may not work when we have a classroom with diverse students. Instead, we can tailor embodied instruction based on students' prior knowledge. Although teacher demonstration might be easier and more resource-efficient from the teachers’ perspective, our findings suggest that teachers need to reconsider this assumption based on the knowledge state of their students: if students have low knowledge, active participation in hands-on activities might be the optimal pedagogy for learners to develop a meaningful and robust understanding of the concepts; on the other hand, for learners with high prior knowledge, observing peer or teacher demonstration of the hands-on activities or other less embodied pedagogies might more efficiently facilitate connection-making and transfer. We encourage teachers to assess their students' understanding and adapt their instructional methods accordingly. Providing hands-on experiences when novices first learn a concept may be especially beneficial, because they lack a sensorimotor grounding for abstract concepts.

Additionally, this study offers methodological insights into implementing embodied pedagogies in large classrooms. While the idea of hundreds of students engaging in physical activities may seem daunting, our findings suggest that simple, well-structured interventions—such as distributing hands-on manipulatives (e.g., a printed sampling distribution on transparency paper) with clear instructions—can make the process manageable. Often, students do not require lengthy, immersive experiences; rather, brief yet concrete interactions, such as physically shuffling dataset pieces, can effectively ground abstract concepts like randomness and the confidence interval.

References

Alibali, M. W., & Nathan, M. J. (2018). Embodied cognition in learning and teaching: Action, observation, and imagination. In International handbook of the learning sciences (pp. 75-85). Routledge.

Barsalou, L. W. (1999). Perceptual symbol systems. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 22(4), 577-660.

Barsalou, L. W. (2008). Grounded cognition. Annu. Rev. Psychol., 59, 617-645.

Borghi, A. M., & Pecher, D. (2011). Introduction to the special topic embodied and grounded cognition. Frontiers in Psychology, 2, 187.

Bransford, J. D., & Schwartz, D. L. (1999). Chapter 3: Rethinking transfer: A simple proposal with multiple implications. Review of research in education, 24(1), 61-100.

Chance, B., del Mas, R., & Garfield, J. (2004). Reasoning about sampling distributions. In The challenge of developing statistical literacy, reasoning and thinking (pp. 295-323). Dordrecht: Springer Netherlands.

Clark, A. (2008). Supersizing the mind: Embodiment, action, and cognitive extension. OUP USA.

Congdon, E. L., Kwon, M. K., & Levine, S. C. (2018). Learning to measure through action and gesture: Children’s prior knowledge matters. Cognition, 180, 182-190.

Congdon, E. L. (2024). Individual differences in working memory predict the efficacy of experimenter‐manipulated gestures in first‐grade children. Child Development, 95(5), 1494-1507.

Fries, L., Son, J. Y., Givvin, K. B., & Stigler, J. W. (2021). Practicing connections: A framework to guide instructional design for developing understanding in complex domains. Educational Psychology Review, 33(2), 739-762.

Goldstone, R. L., Landy, D., & Son, J. Y. (2008). A well grounded education: The role of perception in science and mathematics. Symbols, embodiment, and meaning, 327-355.

Golonka, S., & Wilson, A. D. (2012). Gibson’s ecological approach. Avant: Trends in Interdisciplinary Studies, 3(2), 40-53.

Henriques, A. (2016). Students’ difficulties in understanding of confidence intervals. The Teaching and Learning of Statistics: International Perspectives, 129-138.

Hume, D. (1938). An Abstract of a Treatise of Human Nature, 1740. CUP Archive.

Lakoff, G., & Johnson, M. (2008). Metaphors we live by. University of Chicago press.

Locke, J. (1948). An essay concerning human understanding, 1690.

Martin, T. (2009). A theory of physically distributed learning: How external environments and internal states interact in mathematics learning. Child Development Perspectives, 3(3), 140-144.

Nathan, M. J., & Alibali, M. W. (2021). An embodied theory of transfer of mathematical learning. Transfer of learning: Progressive perspectives for mathematics education and related fields, 27-58.

Nathan, M. J. (2012). Rethinking formalisms in formal education. Educational Psychologist, 47(2), 125-148.

Quine, W. V. O., & Ullian, J. S. (1978). The web of belief (Vol. 2). New York: Random House.

Stigler, J. W., Givvin, K. B., & Thompson, B. J. (2010). What community college developmental mathematics students understand about mathematics. MathAMATYC Educator, 1(3), 4-16.

West, M., & Ross, S. (2002). Retaining females in computer science: A new look at a persistent problem. JCSC, 17(5), 1-7.

Zhang, I., Guo, X. H., Son, J. Y., Blank, I. A., & Stigler, J. W. (2025). Watching videos of a drawing hand improves students’ understanding of the normal probability distribution. Memory & Cognition, 53(1), 262-281.

Zhang, I., Xu, A., Son, J. Y., & Stigler, J. W. (2024). Exploring the Role of Prior Knowledge During Embodied Learning. In Proceedings of the 18th International Conference of the Learning Sciences-ICLS 2024, pp. 1770-1773. International Society of the Learning Sciences.

Zhang, I. Y., Tucker, M. C., & Stigler, J. W. (2022). Watching a hands-on activity improves students’ understanding of randomness. Computers & Education, 186, 104545.

Zhang, I. Y., Xu, A., Son, J. Y., & Stigler, J. W. (2024). Watching hands move enhances learning from concrete and dynamic visualizations. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General.

The Deception Lab: building a research-informed teaching lab for undergraduate students

Tue, 16 Dec 2025 17:06:15 GMT

Cody Porter, PhD, SFHEA, CPsychol
University of the West of England (UWE) Bristol

Learning about research methods and developing research analysis skills is a daunting experience for new university students. Established three years ago, the Deception Lab at the University of the West of England (UWE) Bristol represents a pioneering approach to teaching such research skills to undergraduate psychology students. This essay explores the process of creating the lab and argues that research-informed teaching labs offer superior methods for imparting research skills to students.

A research-informed teaching lab is an educational environment where teaching is closely integrated with research activities. This approach ensures that the latest research findings and methodologies directly inform and enhance the teaching process. This can be established in several ways:

Integration of Research and Teaching: Staff members incorporate their research into the curriculum (or an alternative optional lab), allowing students to engage with cutting-edge knowledge and practices. I chose an optional lab as the number of students in Psychology usually exceeds 100. In year one of the lab, I had a cohort of 50 students (from first-year to final-year students). This number increased to 70 students the following year, and I have kept that as my limit.
Active Learning: Students should have the opportunity to participate in co-creating research projects. This creates a hands-on learning experience that promotes critical thinking and problem-solving skills. It is also a great way to subtly introduce research methods skills. I do this through the co-creation of a research project in the second term of the academic year. This is based upon students' interests within the investigative interviewing and lie detection fields. For example, the students have conducted research on various aspects of rapport building, using a range of different lie detection tools (Porter et al., 2020).
Evidence-Based Practices: Teaching methods should be informed by research on effective learning strategies, ensuring that instruction is grounded in empirical evidence. As a Senior Fellow of Advanced Higher Education, I used peer scaffolding to allow students who have research experience to mentor and support those who do not. Additionally, students found the opportunity to work with a subject expert exciting. They felt more comfortable developing research projects using tools that I had designed (i.e., Porter et al., 2020; 2023; 2025).
Collaborative Environment: Students and staff should work together on research initiatives, creating a collaborative and dynamic learning atmosphere. This is core to the process. Students need to be able to conduct research outside of supervision to be able to develop those independent skills. I do this in the second term as students are usually more confident in how to design and conduct research. Importantly, students in my lab are not required to have any prior research methods skills, as they can join during their first year of study.
Opportunities for Advancement: Students should have opportunities to develop different skills, so that the lab becomes unique to them. I do this by providing mentoring opportunities and paid research assistant roles for projects that are only open to Deception Lab students. This motivates students to engage with the lab as they value having access to these bespoke opportunities, which capitalise on the skills they have learned.

This approach enhances the quality of education and prepares students for future research and professional endeavours.

The Establishment of the Deception Lab

The Deception Lab was established to provide students with hands-on experience in detecting dishonest responses in interview settings, while subtly providing them with opportunities to enhance their understanding of research methods. In the end-of-year course surveys, students often reported that they struggled with the research methods modules, particularly with quantitative analyses. Several final-year students felt they did not get enough opportunities to practice research skills before doing their undergraduate dissertation project.

The lab's primary objective was to bridge the gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application, fostering a deeper understanding of research methodologies and their real-world implications. This meant drawing from a field of psychology that would allow the students to gain other useful career-building skills. For example, students are trained in rapport-building skills by a former police interviewer with over 15 years of experience conducting interviews. Outside of the lab, access to this would not be possible.

To set up a research-informed teaching lab, there must be a cohort of students who are interested in a particular topic, ideally beyond research methods. This is especially important if the lab is not part of a learning module, as there will be no assessments, and attendance is optional. I began this process by having a 2-page expression of interest form about how the lab would help the students with their studies and long-term career plans. This was followed by a research event, whereby students got to participate in various studies. This gave them more of an insight into how lie-detection research functions.

The initial application process provided students with experience in applying for positions, and those who were unsuccessful were invited to reapply the following year. This also ensured that students who had secured a position were more likely to commit to the bi-weekly teaching, training or lab sessions. To help encourage engagement, some activities include reflective writing tasks, which are not accessed but can be used to help staff when writing reference letters. This includes when students apply for paid research assistant positions within the department, postgraduate programmes, or jobs once they graduate.

Other activities included students finding resources (i.e., lie-detection videos on YouTube or journal articles), which we would discuss. This mixture of fun and academic skill-based activities meant that students felt they had ownership over their learning.

Teaching and learning

Research-based teaching is an educational approach where teaching is directly informed by the academic's own research activities. As an academic who specialises in investigative interviewing and lie detection, I had the ability to train students in rapport building and the use of specific lie detection tools, such as the Asymmetric Information Management (AIM) technique (Porter et al., 2020; 2023; 2025), the Model Statement (Leal at al., 2015; Porter et al., 2018; Porter & Salvanelli, 2020), and the polygraph (via the BIOPAC physiological measurement system). Through the Deception Lab, students learn how to be critical of pseudo-scientific approaches, such as the polygraph, through hands-on learning. They also learn how some lie detection tools, such as the Model Statement, do not meet the scientific standards for use in practice due to a failure to replicate or a lack of a robust theoretical underpinning (Porter et al., 2021).

This approach to teaching and learning encourages student engagement. A recent systematic literature review highlighted that teacher support significantly enhances student engagement (Prananto et al., 2025). As Prananto and colleagues (2025) suggest, fostering a positive, supportive learning climate improves learning. This can be achieved through implementing instructional strategies that address students’ psychological needs, such as encouraging autonomy through participatory learning methods, providing constructive feedback to boost competence, and building inclusive environments that foster a sense of belonging. When teachers integrate their research into teaching, students feel more supported and motivated, leading to better academic performance and engagement. For the Deception Lab, students learn how to identify which lie detection tools are evidence-based and which tools should be used in practice (Porter et al., 2021).

Lab Structure

The Deception Lab has a learning structure that changes every year based on the lie deception field and the experiences of the current students. Teaching consists of a combination of lectures, workshops, and practical lab sessions. This approach emphasizes experiential learning and is guided by continuous student feedback. For example, in the first year the sessions were driven by what I thought was important for students to learn. As time progressed, students were able to tailor the content to match their own interests.

Lectures are designed to provide foundational knowledge and theoretical insights into deception detection. Workshops offer interactive opportunities for students to engage with the material, discuss case studies, and develop critical thinking skills. Practical lab sessions allow students to apply their knowledge by conducting experiments and analysing data related to detecting deception.

By continuously adapting the curriculum and incorporating student feedback, the Deception Lab ensures that the learning experience remains relevant, dynamic, and effective. This flexible and responsive teaching model not only enhances student engagement but also prepares them for the complexities of research in the field of lie detection.

Developing Experiments Enhances Learning

Research-led education has been shown to improve students' understanding and appreciation of research. Students value the enthusiasm and expertise of their teachers, which enhances their learning experience (Jiang & Roberts, 2011). Throughout the taught sessions and practical workshops, students learn to use a variety of different lie detection tools. This gives them the opportunity to consider which tool they would like to work with over the next academic year.

During the first term, students have the opportunity to actively participate in co-creating projects, enhancing their practical skills and understanding of research methodologies. This involves planning research that is designed to test specific predictions. Students also learn about the ethical standards that a psychologist should adhere to, including maintaining confidentiality, obtaining informed consent, and ensuring the welfare of participants. These ethical principles are crucial for conducting responsible and respectful research, and they help students understand the importance of integrity and professionalism in their work.

During the second term, students submit a group-based project to the ethics committee and then collect data for the project they have co-created. As part of this project, students learn how to detect deception using verbal cues and how to empirically evaluate them using statistical techniques.

Research Methods Skills

Research-informed teaching offers several advantages over traditional teaching methods. Students engage in inquiry-based learning, which promotes critical thinking and problem-solving skills. Students learn to formulate hypotheses, design experiments, and analyse data. Students in the lab appear more confident in their abilities to conduct research. This includes designing their own research projects.

To support learning, students are encouraged to complete a self-reflection (Gibbs, 1988) alongside their first research project. This allows them to track their progress in a way that is meaningful to them. At the end of data collection for their first project, students were invited to a workshop where they discussed their experiences. Those students who completed the self-reflection were invited to talk about how this activity helped them to understand how their skills were developing. To encourage students to engage with this, I informed them that these reflections are included in a learning portfolio, which serves as a valuable resource for supporting their references when applying for postgraduate study or employment.

To create an effective teaching environment, students need to feel able to make mistakes. As the lab is completely optional, students typically report feeling more comfortable trying to develop projects. This is also true for data analysis. Alongside the Deception Lab, year one students are learning about research methods through their statistics module. The Deception Lab provides an opportunity to apply these skills with their peers, using data they collected. Students often report having a higher level of statistical understanding after practising analysing data using Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), t-tests, and discriminant analysis. These analyses are typically used in lie detection research (Porter et al., 2018; 2023; 2025), which means that the students can look at published examples to support their learning.

Additional Skills

Working in a research lab encourages collaboration and communication among students. These skills are essential for successful research and are highly valued in the professional world. In a lab setting, students often work in teams to design experiments, collect and analyze data, and present their findings. This collaborative environment fosters a sense of community and shared purpose, helping students learn to navigate group dynamics, delegate tasks, and leverage each other's strengths.

Students gain hands-on experience with research tools and techniques, enhancing their methodological skills. This practical experience is invaluable for their future careers, particularly in fields that require strong research capabilities. For those aspiring to become forensic psychologists, this journey involves understanding the complexities of human behaviour, mastering the art of deception detection, and applying psychological principles in legal contexts. The skills and knowledge acquired in the Deception Lab provide a solid foundation for their future roles, enabling them to conduct thorough investigations, provide expert testimony, and contribute to the justice system with confidence and integrity.

Summary

The Deception Lab at UWE Bristol serves as an exemplary model of research-informed teaching. Students learn how to establish rapport with interviewees and use various lie detection tools effectively. Through this process, they become experienced learners who start to develop curiosity. As an additional option, students can take part in a research project that they co-create, providing them with support for learning research methods in a non-traditional format. The Deception Lab demonstrates the effectiveness of research-informed teaching in developing research skills outside of the classroom. By providing a hands-on, inquiry-based learning environment, the lab enhances critical thinking, real-world application, engagement, methodological skills, and collaboration. As higher education continues to evolve, research-informed teaching labs like the Deception Lab will play a crucial role in preparing students for the challenges of the future.

References

Gibbs, G. (1988). Learning by doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Further Education Unit.

Jiang, F., & Roberts, P. (2011). An Investigation of the Impact of Research-led Education on Student Learning and Understandings of Research. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 8(2), 39-53. https://doi.org/10.53761/1.8.2.4

Leal, S., Vrij, A., Warmelink, L., Vernham, Z., & Fisher, R. P. (2015). You cannot hide your telephone lies: Providing a model statement as an aid to detect deception in insurance telephone calls. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 20(1), 129-146. https://doi.org/10.1111/lcrp.12017

Porter, C. N., & Salvanelli, G. (2020). Eliciting information and cues to deception using a model statement: Examining the effect of presentation modality. Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling, 17(2), 101-117. https://doi.org/10.1002/jip.1541

Porter, C. N., Morrison, E., Fitzgerald, R. J., Taylor, R., & Harvey, A. C. (2020). Lie-detection by strategy manipulation: Developing an asymmetric information management (AIM) technique. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 9(2), 232-241. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jarmac.2020.01.004

Porter, C. N., Taylor, R., & Salvanelli, G. (2021). A critical analysis of the Model Statement literature: Should this tool be used in practice? Journal of Investigative Psychology and Offender Profiling, 18(1), 35-55. https://doi.org/10.1002/jip.1563

Porter, C. N., Taylor, R., Lee, R., Chioatto, E., Hill, M., & Harvey, A. C. (2023). Applying the asymmetric information management (AIM) technique to virtual interviewing. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 37(3), 470-479. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.4049

Porter, C. N., Vrij, A., Leal, S., Vernham, Z., Salvanelli, G., & McIntyre, N. (2018). Using specific model statements to elicit information and cues to deceit in information-gathering interviews. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 7(1), 132-142. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jarmac.2017.10.003

Porter, C., Morrison, E., Harvey, A., & Taylor, R. (2025). Complications and consistency: investigating the asymmetric information management ‘AIM’technique with follow-up statements. Psychology, Crime & Law, 31(1), 41-63. https://doi.org/10.1080/1068316X.2023.2229478

Prananto, K., Cahyadi, S., Lubis, F. Y., & Hinduan, Z. R. (2025). Perceived teacher support and student engagement among higher education students–a systematic literature review. BMC Psychology, 13(1), 112. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-025-02412-w

Adding advanced data science skills in psychology laboratory courses

Sun, 17 Aug 2025 22:21:22 GMT

James Mantell & Aileen Bailey
St. Mary's College of Maryland

Acknowledgements: NSF IUSE: EDU Award 2235645 (Developing Modernized Data Science Instruction in Psychology Curricula).

Data Science in Psychology

Data science is a growing, interdisciplinary field that leverages computational methods to interpret large datasets. Students with data science skills are better prepared for research opportunities and they are more competitive across multiple career paths (Business-Higher Education Forum, 2017; National Association of Colleges and Employers, 2024). However, undergraduate data science training is limited (Marshall & Geier, 2020; Yavuz & Ward, 2020). Psychology is an excellent candidate for data science training because psychology and data science share core knowledge areas including research design, quantitative literacy (e.g., probabilistic knowledge, visualization literacy; Börner et al., 2019), and critical thinking (e.g., reasoning, problem solving; Halpern, 2013). Moreover, many psychologists practice data science techniques in their research that can be developed in the classroom.

Focus on Data Science Skills

Before adding data science course material, psychology instructors should consider their pedagogical situation to determine whether data science content is compatible with their existing program or course learning outcomes. Some psychology programs exert more control over curricular material; such restrictions may limit the instructor’s freedom to introduce new course experiences or skills. Alternatively, topics and lab courses may offer more flexibility for instructors to focus on data science skill development. In any case, instructors should know that there is no need to reinvent a course that works well. Data science can be introduced in modular, manageable lessons that complement existing psychology course goals.

After determining how much flexibility they have in developing their course or curriculum, instructors should identify the data science skills that they want to teach. For example, we designed our psychology data science course materials to help students develop four families of data science skills that are linked to successful professional outcomes. Our psychology data science courses are presented in a 300-level laboratory course format, with 12 students per section. It is also possible to teach data science in larger sections, especially with TAs who can supplement instruction. Computer programming is an essential data science skill, but in many psychology programs, dedicated computer programming instruction may be limited to statistical coursework. Data management includes ethical data acquisition, transformation, and distribution. While psychology students increasingly understand the need to transparently communicate their research design via preregistration, it is less common for them to understand how to ethically share their data to enable other researchers to replicate their results. Data visualization, analysis, and modeling enable data scientists to extract meaning from data by combining analytical and visualization techniques. While these topics are introduced in psychological statistics courses, data science techniques present opportunities for deeper exploration including highly customizable visualizations and advanced techniques such as machine learning. Data storytelling with code offers a unique approach to scientific communication that enables the audience to replicate and extend the analyses in ways that can enhance transparency and motivate new discoveries (Granger & Pérez, 2021). A successful data scientist must be able to describe their analytical workflow just as clearly as they can show their results.

Psychology Data Science Instruction Ideas

With respect to computer programming, we chose to teach python in our courses because it is a readable, flexible, and popular programming language within data science. Thus, our course assignments feature python-based platforms including Jupyter Notebook (an open-source, web-based, interactive coding platform; https://jupyter.org/) and PsychoPy (Peirce et al., 2019). However, some instructors may prefer to teach coding via R (https://www.r-project.org/), especially if they are already familiar with the language or their program includes coursework with R integration. The choice of programming language is not important; rather, the instructors’ commitment to integrate coding into the classroom—in any format—will accelerate students’ data science skill development.

To ensure that all students begin with a foundational knowledge of computer systems, we developed lessons for our lab courses that enable students to practice their knowledge of file hierarchies (e.g., by comparing file visibility within Notebook and their OS file explorer). Text-based programming lessons begin with simple text formatting via Markdown, wherein they learn to switch between code and text cells within their Notebook. After students have gained familiarity with the Notebook interface and practiced basic coding with Markdown, they are ready to learn how to use python for data science skills including data management and visualization. We teach students how to use pandas (https://pandas.pydata.org/) to import, access, and transform datafiles. Along the way, students learn about the reproducibility advantage of using python for data management. For example, by writing their data transformation code in a Jupyter Notebook, they permit others to replicate their work. We additionally teach students how to conduct basic data analyses with pandas, including descriptive statistics.

Instructors and students may find the most value in learning how to use data science visualization tools, which can offer superior graphical capabilities in comparison to popular statistical software. We prefer to teach data visualization with seaborn (Waskom, 2021) because it produces elegant, customizable graphs. Our visualization lessons vary depending on the level of knowledge that students bring to the session, which increases with practice across the semester. For beginning lessons, we present verbose instructional Notebooks including, for example, a codebook to describe a research design and cells containing pre-built code that students can execute to produce informative graphs. For intermediate lessons, we provide simple challenges that empower students to explore seaborn functionality (e.g., format graph options; compare plot styles; create combination graphs such as a bar plot with overlaid data points). For advanced lessons, we provide a dataset and a goal (e.g., create a figure that addresses the hypothesis), which often leads to critical thinking opportunities (e.g., what is gained or lost from choosing one kind of visualization over the other). An iterative teaching approach increases students’ understanding of data science workflows and enables them to see the commensurate benefits of transparent science communication. For more information about our ongoing project, please visit our OSF page (https://osf.io/xze7n/); we will freely share our course materials at the end of our project in 2026.

Successes, Challenges, and Suggestions

Our students’ abilities to achieve our data science learning outcomes suggests that psychology students, even those without any previous computer programming experience, can successfully learn data science techniques within a single semester course. We are convinced that psychology students have the background knowledge to learn data science skills, and we are confident that learning those skills will be beneficial to their long-term professional development. Moreover, data science instruction can enhance students’ research design, quantitative literacy, and critical thinking knowledge in ways that substantially bolster their psychology research capabilities. Depending on program goals, data science skills could be taught across the curriculum with a gradually increasing depth of coverage, or they can be presented within a small number of courses to complement student and faculty preferences for such material. No matter which approach instructors take, it is worth noting that data science skills, like many others, must be practiced to promote retention. Thus, we suggest that data science instruction should appear soon after statistics and methods coverage, and occur in more than one course experience. It is also important to remind students to note their growing data science skills on their resumes.

Successful psychology data science instruction requires planning, piloting, and refinement. If possible, instructors should introduce data science skills within courses that they will have the opportunity to teach again in the future so that they can improve their approach. For example, after teaching advanced data visualization in our courses, we realized that we had to remove some of our preexisting course content to make room for our new data science course experiences. Instructors will have to choose how to divide their limited class time between content knowledge (i.e., textbook material; lecture instruction) and skill development (i.e., practical applications; active learning), and their course revisions should be informed by program and course learning outcomes. Instructors should not expect to design the perfect course on their first try. Instead, by accepting that obstacles will arise, they can commit to iterative improvement within and between semesters. Finally, instructors should be prepared to address some students’ anxiety about computer programming. We suggest that they begin with introductory lessons and foster an encouraging learning atmosphere in the classroom. For example, by repeating mantras like “anyone can be a programmer”, instructors emphasize that data science skills, like all others, are achievable via practice. In conclusion, psychology students are prepared to learn data science skills. It is up to instructors to offer them the opportunity.

References

Börner, K., Bueckle, A., & Ginda, M. (2019). Data visualization literacy: Definitions, conceptual frameworks, exercises, and assessments. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 116(6), 1857–1864. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1807180116

Business-Higher Education Forum (2017). Investing in America’s data science talent: The case for action [White paper]. PwC. https://www.naceweb.org/uploadedfiles/files/2018/publication/free-report/bhef-investing-in-data-science.pdf

Granger, B. E., & Pérez, F. (2021). Jupyter: Thinking and storytelling with code and data. Computing in Science & Engineering, 23(2), 7-14, https://doi.org/10.1109/MCSE.2021.3059263

Halpern, D. F. (2013). Thought and knowledge. Psychology Press. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781315885278

Marshall, B., & Geier, S. (2020). Cross-disciplinary faculty development in data science principles for classroom integration. SIGCSE '20: Proceedings of the 51st ACM Technical Symposium on Computer Science, 1207-1213. https://doi.org/10.1145/3328778.3366801

National Association of Colleges and Employers. (2024). Career readiness: Competencies for a career-ready workforce [Fact sheet]. NACE. https://www.naceweb.org/docs/default-source/default-document-library/2024/resources/nace-career-readiness-competencies-revised-apr-2024.pdf

Peirce, J., Gray, J. R., Simpson, S., MacAskill, M., Höchenberger, R., Sogo, H., Kastman, E., & Lindeløv, J. K. (2019). PsychoPy2: Experiments in behavior made easy. Behavior Research Methods, 51(1), 195-203. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-018-01193-y

Waskom, M. L. (2021). Seaborn: Statistical data visualization. Journal of Open Source Software, 6(60), 3021. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.21105/joss.03021

Yavuz, F. G., & Ward, M. D. (2020). Fostering undergraduate data science. The American Statistician, 74(1), 8-16. https://doi.org/10.1080/00031305.2017.1407360

Teaching Critical Thinking in An Academic Minefield

Thu, 31 Jul 2025 20:06:30 GMT

Douglas A. Bernstein
University of South Florida
Note: This article is based on a chapter to appear in R. J. Sternberg & W. Niu (eds.), A Multidisciplinary Approach to Critical Thinking. New York: Palgrave.

Anyone who has been teaching psychology for more than a few weeks knows that most of our students are nice, reasonable people who are anticipating an interesting course and hoping to do well in it. There are always a few exceptions, though, so we sometimes have students who challenge us in various ways. In the distant past, as when I started teaching in 1966, you could deal with these students without too much drama. That was because teachers had the power to establish and enforce policies about attendance, grading standards, make-up exams, deadlines, and the like and students were expected to accept those decisions, even if they weren’t happy about them. If they didn’t like you or your course, the worst they could do was give you lousy course evaluations. And unless most of the class did so every semester, those lousy evaluations were unlikely to have significant consequences for your pay raises or your prospects for tenure, promotion, retention, or teaching awards. This uneven distribution of power was comforting for teachers, though some of them tended to abuse it. For example, in 1975 a colleague at Western Washington State College (now University) proudly declared that “the tenured full professor represents the last bastion of absolute power in the world.”

I doubt that this was ever true, but since then, and especially over the last 10 or 15 years, the balance of power has been shifting in the opposite direction as administrators in higher education in North America have become ever more sensitive to student complaints about faculty as communicated through course evaluations, petitions, social media campaigns, and other channels. On some campuses, faculty have faced formal complaints, as well as organized protests and demands for disciplinary action or dismissal in response to something they said or did in class that even one student interpreted as oppressive or insensitive or harmful or hurtful or violent or racist. Even enforcing deadlines and setting high grading standards may be interpreted by some students as offensive signs of elitism, privilege, or worse. One observer described teaching in higher education today as “an exercise in avoiding tripwires” (Pettit, 2023). A database maintained by the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) shows that in the last two years alone there were 63 student-initiated attempts to punish professors for what they said or did in the classroom (in 2000, there was one). More than two-thirds of these cases resulted in sanctions, up to and including suspension or dismissal, mainly against untenured faculty (Honeycutt, 2024).

Of course, some professors do behave in ways that deserve reporting, and those people should face the consequences of their bad behavior, but the cases in the FIRE survey involve situations in which faculty were attacked unreasonably (e.g. Cascone, 2024; Jones, 2022). And even though, as a percentage of all the students and professors taking and teaching courses in the United States every year, 63 student-initiated punishment attempts is a miniscule number, cases in which professors are unfairly targeted can—like the rare shark attacks and plane crashes that create fear of beaches and flying—create widespread fear among faculty.

It is no wonder, then, that according to a recent survey by the Chronicle of Higher Education, many college and university professors at all levels of seniority worry about doing things that might make students feel distressed, angry, or vengeful (McMurtrie, 2024). For example, about half of them give trigger warnings designed to prepare students for potentially upsetting course material (Kamenetz, 2016). Though there is strong evidence that such warnings are probably unnecessary, not very effective, and potentially counterproductive (e.g., Bridgland et al., 2023; Jones et al., 2020; Kimble et al., 2021, 2022; Sanson et al., 2019), professors still provide them, partly to establish themselves as trustworthy allies (Chew, 2023), but also to forestall students’ complaints, especially on course evaluations. One respondent to the Chronicle survey described the current preoccupation with student complaints as creating a “culture of fear and pandering” in which faculty who might otherwise employ firm but fair teaching methods and high grading standards are now adopting a more permissive approach. Another said, “I don’t discuss alternative values and arguments for positions I know my students hold.”

This last comment should be particularly troubling to psychology teachers because if fear of upsetting students prevents us from challenging their preconceptions, biases, assumptions, and misconceptions, it becomes much more difficult and potentially dangerous to ask them to consider multiple perspectives and alternative interpretations of research on sensitive or controversial topics. For example, based on what they have heard elsewhere, many students are likely to enter our courses believing that intelligence tests are inherently biased against minority groups (see Reynolds et al., 2021), that recovered memories of childhood abuse are common and accurate (see Hyman, 2000), that stereotype threat significantly impairs performance on high stakes academic tests (see Fourgassie et al., 2025; Steele & Aronson, 2000), or that most people (especially white people) harbor unconscious bias against other races that causes them to discriminate in various ways (see Charlesworth & Banaji, 2019; Oswald et al., 2013). Some of these students may not react well if their instructor presents evidence that qualifies, let alone contradicts those beliefs.

Concern over such reactions is not a problem for teachers whose courses don’t cover topics like these, or who play it safe by presenting the conventional wisdom about them that is typically presented in textbooks (e.g, Bartels, 2023). However, if you do address such topics and if you ask students to consider alternative interpretations of research about them, I am sure you have asked yourself how to do so while minimizing the risk of formal complaints, protests, or other undesirable consequences. If it were me, the first step would be to consider whether my teaching style provides a context in which challenging students’ preconceptions and sensitivities is expected and acceptable.

Tripwires and Teaching Styles

The teaching styles that we most often see in the classroom echo the four styles of parenting identified more than 50 years ago by developmental psychologist Diana Baumrind (1971). As you probably know, her classification system crosses two levels of parental involvement/support with two levels of demand for discipline to create permissive-neglectful, authoritarian, permissive-indulgent, and authoritative styles. Let’s consider what these relationship styles look like when applied to teaching (Bassett et al., 2013).

Teachers who personify a permissive-neglectful style do little more than come to class, deliver the same lectures year after year, discourage questions, and escape the classroom with as little student contact as possible. They generate plenty of student complaints, but these usually take the form of bad course evaluations, not protests or petitions because these teachers are not involved enough in their courses to address sensitive or controversial material, let alone promote critical thinking about it. Teachers who fit an authoritarian profile are similarly low on involvement but are preoccupied with enforcing strict discipline. Like authoritarian parents, they offer students little or no opportunity for discussion or argument. (These people are not necessarily bad teachers. Like me, you may have fond memories of tough instructors from whom you learned a lot, even though you might not have had much fun doing it.) Authoritarian professors are likely to march straight through academic minefields, teaching as they always have, and letting the chips fall where they may. Permissive-indulgent teachers tend to be deeply involved with their students and, like “helicopter parents,” perhaps too much so. They worry about the effects of academic stress on students’ mental health and self-esteem, and as a result, their courses may be only moderately demanding. They may believe that students’ efforts to succeed are at least as deserving of reward as the outcome of those efforts, as embodied in test scores and other performance assessments. This teaching style is the safest one on campuses where student activism is prevalent because it combines sensitivity to students’ sensitivities with flexible course requirements and deadlines.

An authoritative teaching style blends high involvement with firm but fair discipline. Authoritative teachers care about their teaching and their students, but they reward outcome, not just effort. They see students as responsible adults, so although they are willing to help, they are careful not to create dependency or to let themselves be exploited or manipulated. They reward student success with praise as well as high grades. They grant requests for special consideration only when justified by confirmed conditions or circumstances, and in accordance with institutional policies. They think carefully about their rules and standards, announce them in advance, explain why they are necessary, and enforce them consistently.

Like all category systems, this classification of teaching styles is not perfect, if for no other reason than that most teachers probably adopt elements of different styles in different situations, but my years of experience lead me to nominate a mainly authoritative teaching style as the best one overall. I say that first because it allows teachers to deal fairly but firmly with students’ special requests, grading complaints, and the like, but also because it has advantages that go beyond handling everyday administrative matters. One of the most important of these is that, because authoritative teachers consider students to be responsible adults, they can ask them to sign classroom contracts that establish agreements about how the course will be run.

The Syllabus as a Contract

Virtually every psychology teacher in North America offers a syllabus, and most teachers (and administrators) consider them to be formal agreements between themselves and their students. Some teachers even ask students to acknowledge having read, understood, and agreed to course policies about grading standards, the use of AI, definitions of plagiarism, and other topics. An outstanding example comes from my colleague Jennifer Coleman at Western New Mexico University (J. Coleman, personal communication, July 6, 2024). She requires her students to read and initial a list of course rules and policies and then sign the following statement:

I have read all policies and informational items, as indicated by my initials above. I understand that these are intended to support my success in the course and, more importantly, my learning and growth as a student. By signing here, I acknowledge that I will follow all policies and utilize the resources, including the schedule of due dates and writing checklist, as well as supplemental resources… and tutoring resources available, as needed.

I think the course syllabus is also a natural place to present the terms and conditions of a classroom contract whose mutual promises and commitments set the stage for critical thinking. For example, it can include statements designed to assure students that their teacher will: (1) be respectful toward them, (2) base grades solely on course performance, (3) present course material in an unbiased manner, (4) teach how to think about psychological science, not what to think about it, (5) encourage the free exchange of ideas, (6) welcome the expression of diverse viewpoints, including unpopular ones, and (7) be open to hearing complaints about the course. It can also convey expectations that students will: (1) recognize that some course content might be distressing, (2) agree to be open-minded when considering that content, (3) be tolerant and respectful of their classmates’ viewpoints, even if they find them offensive, and (4) bring complaints about the course to the instructor before taking them to others.

If you want explicit permission to challenge your students to think critically about sensitive and controversial topics, you can get it by asking them to initial a statement that reads something like this:

I agree to let you challenge me to think critically about the concepts, principles, and phenomena associated with (course title). I understand that you will ask me to consider and evaluate the validity of claims and evidence underlying its theories. I agree to keep an open mind about evidence and points of view that might conflict with what I know, or think I know. I understand that you will not be trying to prove that I am wrong, but to prompt me to ask myself if and why I am right. I acknowledge that the process of critical thinking might at times be distressing, but I recognize that experiencing a certain amount of discomfort is a vital part of my education.

Of course, even when students agree to be challenged and to think critically about those challenges, they may not always do so. Still, I would argue that when they initial that statement and remain enrolled in the course, it provides a framework that justifies, legitimizes—and may head off complaints about—your efforts to promote critical thinking about even the most sensitive and controversial course material.

Suppose, for example, that you plan to use a critical thinking framework that prompts students to ask themselves five questions about whatever course topic is under discussion: (1) What am I being asked to believe? (2) What evidence is available to support the assertion? (3) Are there alternative ways of interpreting that evidence? (4) What additional evidence would help to evaluate those alternative interpretations? and (5) What conclusions are most reasonable given the evidence available? (Bernstein, 2020). If that topic is, say, the claim that intelligence tests are unfairly biased against racial minorities, the most potentially contentious comments and inflammatory reactions are likely to come in response to the third question, because it is in relation to that question that you might be presenting evidence that challenges students’ existing assumptions and beliefs.

This is when a course contract can help. If there is pushback against your efforts to provoke critical thinking, be ready to display the slide you stashed in every PowerPoint deck that summarizes the contract terms and conditions that your students initialed. Doing so can provide them with a useful reminder of their agreement to entertain potentially distressing material and perspectives, while reinforcing your status as an authoritative teacher who can deal with any classroom situation in a firm, fair, and respectful manner.

References

Bartels, J. M. (2023). Indoctrination in introduction to psychology. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 22(3), 226-236.https://doi.org/10.1177/14757257231195450

Bassett, J. F., Snyder, T. L., Rogers, D. T., & Collins, C. L. (2013). Permissive, authoritarian, and authoritative instructors: Applying the concept of parenting styles to the college classroom. Individual Differences Research, 11, 1–11.

Baumrind, D. (1971). Current patterns of parental authority. Developmental Psychology Monographs, 4 (1, part 2).

Bernstein, D.A. (2020). Promoting critical thinking by teaching, or taking, psychology courses. In Sternberg, R.J. & Halpern, D.F. (Eds.), Critical thinking in psychology (2nd Ed.). New York: Cambridge University Press.

Bitzan, J. (2023). 2023 American college student freedom, progress and flourishing survey. Sheila and Robert Challey Institute for Global Innovation and Growth, North Dakota State University.

Bridgland, V. M. E., Jones, P. J., & Bellet, B. W. (2023). A meta-analysis of the efficacy of trigger warnings, content warnings, and content notes. Clinical Psychological Science, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/21677026231186625

Cascone, S. (2024, July 24). Hamline settles with professor sacked over prophet Muhammad artworks. Artnet News. https://news.artnet.com/art-world/hamline-settles-with-sacked-professor-muhammad-censorship-2515768

Charlesworth, T. E. S., & Banaji, M. R. (2019). Patterns of implicit and explicit attitudes: I Long-term change and stability from 2007 to 2016. Psychological Science, 30(2), 174–192. https://doi-org.stetson.idm.oclc.org/10.1177/0956797618813087

Fourgassie, L., Subra, B., & Sanitioso, R. B. (2025). Revisiting the concept of stereotype threat(s): Is it all about the situation? Psychological Review. Advance online publication. https://doi-org.proxy2.library.illinois.edu/10.1037/rev0000555

Honeycutt, N. (2024). Silence in the Classroom: The 2024 FIRE Faculty Survey Report. The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. https://www.thefire.org/research-learn/silence-classroom-2024-fire-faculty-survey-report

Hyman, I. E., Jr. (2000). The memory wars. In U. Neisser & I. E. Hyman, Jr. (Eds.), Memory observed (2nd ed., pp. 374–379). New York: Worth.

Jones, P. J., Bellet, B. W., & McNally, R. J. (2020). Helping or harming? The effect of trigger warnings on individuals with trauma histories. Clinical Psychological Science, 8(5), 905–917. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702620921341

Kamenetz, A. (2016, September 7). Half of professors in NPR Ed survey have used “trigger warnings.” National Public Radio. Retrieved from http://www.npr.org/sections/ed/2016/09/07/492979242/half-of-professors-in-npr-edsurvey-have-used-trigger-warnings

Kimble M, Flack W, Koide J, Bennion K, Brenneman M, Meyersburg C (2021) Student reactions to traumatic material in literature: Implications for trigger warnings. PLoS ONE 16(3):e0247579. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247579

Kimble, M., Koide, J., & Flack, W. F. (2022). Students responses to differing trigger warnings: A replication and extension. Journal of American College Health, 0(0), 1–4. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2022.2098038

Jones, M. (2022, December 8) I was fired from NYU after students complained that the class was too hard. Who’s next? Boston Globe. https://archive.ph/1YWqc

McMurtrie, B. (2024, February 21). ‘A culture of fear and of pandering.’ The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/a-culture-of-fear-and-of-pandering-what-readers-told-us-about-teaching-evaluations

Oswald, F. L., Mitchell, G., Blanton, H., Jaccard, J., & Tetlock, P. E. (2013). Predicting

ethnic and racial discrimination: A meta-analysis of IAT criterion studies. Journal of

Personality and Social Psychology, 105(2), 171–192.

https://doi-org.stetson.idm.oclc.org/10.1037/a0032734.supp

Pettit, E. (2023). Power shift. The Chronicle of Higher Education, April 5.

Sanson, M., Strange, D., & Garry, M. (2019). Trigger warnings are trivially helpful at reducing negative affect, intrusive thoughts, and avoidance. Clinical Psychological Science, 7(4), 778–793. https://doi.org/10.1177/2167702619827018

Reynolds, C.R., Altmann, R.A., Allen, D.N. (2021). The problem of bias in psychological assessment. In C.R. Reynolds, R.A. Altmann, & D.N. Allen (Eds.), Mastering modern psychological testing (2nd ed., pp. 573-613). Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-59455-8_15

Steele, C. M., & Aronson, J. (2000). Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans. In C. Stangor (Ed.), Stereotypes and prejudice: Essential readings (pp. 369–389). Philadelphia: Psychology Press/Taylor & Francis.

Choices About Student Choices

Thu, 03 Jul 2025 23:23:14 GMT

(Alannah) Shelby Rivers
Texas Woman's University

I recently attended Danny Oppenheimer’s excellent NITOP session “Choosing to learn: The importance of student autonomy in post-secondary education,” which discussed the benefits of offering student choices in assignments and course structure (e.g., allowing students to choose if attendance is part of their grade or not, or whether to complete a more challenging assignment compared to an easier alternative). After the talk, a new friend (another reason to love conferences!) turned to me and asked what I thought. I replied that that I already implemented several student choices in my courses, so I was very relieved to see that there was research being done to back up those “gut feelings.” I was half-joking, but it did make me realize how important my “gut feelings” about student autonomy and assignment choices are to my teaching practice more broadly. I had often thought about these as individual ideas and practices, but I realized I wanted to be more intentional about viewing student choice as a broader framework. It can be easy to say that I value giving my students choices, but what kinds of choices am I giving them?

Dabrowski and Marshall (2018) identified three key types of student choice in assignments. First, there is choice in content – for example, offering a choice in readings with similar themes or impact. Second, there is choice in product – allowing students to submit assignments in different mediums (podcast vs. website) or structures (application vs. critique). Finally, there is choice in process, such as choosing whether to collaborate and with whom, or what steps to complete and when. These types of choices are often combined (e.g., choosing both a modality and partners for a final project), but it was helpful for me to consider how I decide which choices to offer students, and I hope it is helpful for you as well.

I often offer content choices, especially in my lower-division courses such as Developmental Psychology (first-year level, 60-80 students). During many class sessions, we have what I call “Choose Your Own Adventure” activities, where students select a brief reading from a curated list representing a diversity of experiences related to the topic that may be unfamiliar. For example, when we cover middle childhood and the school transition, they may choose to read about experiences in Montessori schools, special education, homeschooling, or gifted & talented programs; when we cover birth, topics include planned c-sections, epidurals, doulas, and labor experiences from a variety of perspectives (e.g., Black women, trans men). Then, students share about the different perspectives they read (either in small groups, or using online responses), including why they chose that particular reading, and we come together in an open discussion to try to find common themes as well as areas of divergence across the perspectives.

Students have responded well to these choices and often ask for more of these activities. These content choices seem like the most intuitively easy form of choice to introduce, and that is borne out in the literature; a recent study (Harrington, 2024) that reviewed syllabi posted to STP’s website found that over half of the syllabi included content choices, compared to just 25% giving choices in product and 6% in process. Still, there may be circumstances where this form of choice is not appropriate for the pedagogical goals of the course. For example, in my graduate-level discussion seminar Advanced Developmental Psychology (10-20 students), I require everyone to read the same articles, both to ensure all students become familiar with some of the major theories and most recent research, and because this allows for deeper and more meaningful discussion during the three-hour class sessions.

I have also offered product choices in both lower- and upper-division courses, often in concert with content choices. For example, multiple courses include a “creative final project,” where students propose a method of sharing or implementing course content with a unique audience and appropriately creative way of reaching that audience (e.g., Instagram page for college students, picture book for young children, short video for busy medical professionals). This has been highly effective in my upper-level courses, but some first-year students have struggled with the scope of choices they have to make. For example, students may repeatedly ask for ideas from previous classes and may not consider content we will cover later in the class or ways to present the material outside of a paper or PowerPoint. As a result, I have begun implementing more scaffolding in these courses; in Developmental Psychology (60-80 students), I usually dedicate a full class day where I ask students to submit three project ideas to anonymously share with the full class, and I provide feedback (also to the full class). In smaller classes (e.g., Health Psychology, 30-40 students), I have sometimes formed small groups based on the themes of the project ideas so students can discuss their ideas with others who have similar interests. I also have three check-in dates throughout the semester that give students a chance to revisit their product selection.

More complex, and more uncommon in psychology syllabi (Harrington, 2024), are “cafeteria-style” assignments, where students can mix and match different assignment options in order to meet required credit. I have tried this in several of my classes by moving my lower-stakes assignments into a catch-all category of “Applications.” Each type of option has a set point value (e.g., 1 point for watching a documentary, 2 for reading an academic article, 3 for hands-on activities), and students earn points based on the combinations of assignments they have chosen up to the total amount of points available for the assignment category (usually 10). Some students will earn all of their credit in one category, such as by reading and annotating several articles, whereas others will pull a little from each category to have a variety of activities. This system can promote better performance and student satisfaction, but it can lead to greater burden on instructors who have to create more assignments to choose from (Arendt et al., 2016). To offload some of this work, I allow students to suggest their own Applications, vetted by me and with a cut-off date somewhat earlier in the semester. In most semesters, I add at least a few assignment options this way – for example, in my upper-level Addiction course (30-50 students), a student suggested a 3-point assignment where they reach out to a local treatment center to learn more about their therapeutic approach. I also find the system can be confusing (also reported in Arendt et al., 2016), so dedicating significant time to explaining and answering questions can be required.

Finally, I have been experimenting with process choices pertaining to deadlines, sequencing, and collaboration. Often these choices overlap with content and product choices, leading to the most flexible assignments. For example, in my creative final projects described above, I have been more recently offering the option to complete the project either alone or in a small group (up to three students total), instead of my previous default to group work. Students responded very positively to this decision; I observed less conflict and greater group cohesion among the large percentage of students who ultimately chose to collaborate. However, it is important to consider what might be lost with these choices; as Nichols (2023) notes, allowing extensive student choice in product and processes may lead to areas of weakness (e.g., collaboration) going unaddressed. There may also be practical consequences; in Developmental Psychology (60-80 students), even my usual “three-minute thesis” style project presentations would take more than a week if students worked alone, so I ended up cutting them entirely.

Compared to group work decisions, worries about the consequences of giving students choices related to deadlines and sequencing may be more obvious – what if students wait until the last minute and work is late, incomplete, or missing? In my view, these fears are not unfounded. In the Applications described above, students have almost the entire semester to turn in their selected assignments. Although I encourage students to turn the Applications in as they go, reliably, a small percentage of the class will not begin to work on these assignments until the very end and will come up short against my at-that-point unforgiving late policy. Moreover, as Nichols (2023) found, while most students will turn in the work on time and report an increase in interest, this approach tends to lead to a large amount of concentrated grading for faculty, which can be especially difficult at the end of the semester. Perhaps it is better to compromise; I have found some success with a semi-flexible strategy in Applied Statistics (sophomore-level). A large part of the coursework in this class comprises SPSS labs, and students often need repeated practice and hands-on support (from me or from our statistics tutors) to really master the skills. As such, I allow resubmissions and late assignments until the exam where the material is covered. This neatly breaks up the class into a few digestible chunks and prevents students from waiting until the very end to submit, while still giving choices and opportunities for recovery.

Ultimately, making choices about student choices is not easy, but it is full of exciting possibilities that can lead to more engaging and meaningful experiences. When making these decisions, it can be helpful to keep in mind that some types of choices may be more unfamiliar to your students. More choice is not always perceived as positive, and you may need to budget more time than you expect to help students understand their options and feel prepared to take on new challenges. Therefore, it may be wise to start small. Content choices can be highly impactful and may be more familiar to students and less burdensome to instructors. Consider choices that can be included in just one assignment or in-class activity and expand as needed. Finally, just like with any pedagogical decision, it can be very helpful to explain to students why you are offering these particular choices. For example, while I now use it in other classes, I developed the Applications assignment for my Addiction class because there was such a range of student goals in taking the class. Many students are interested in clinical or counseling careers working with clients who may have substance use disorders, while others come from biology or neuroscience and are more interested in the mechanics of individual substances. Another contingent of students have a more personal interest in the topic, based on their own experiences or those of their loved ones. I wanted to offer all of these students the chance to do further exploration of what mattered most to them. Explaining this to students seemed to help address lingering questions about the assignment and even opened up broader conversations about what choices I do not offer and our course learning goals. Not all choices will be the right fit for every class, but I believe being more intentional about the choices I give students will make my teaching more effective – no matter the course.

References

Arendt, A., Trego, A., & Allred, J. (2016). Students reach beyond expectations with cafeteria style grading. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, 8(1), 2–17. https://doi.org/10.1108/JARHE-03-2014-0048

Dabrowski, J., & Marshall, T. R. (2018). Motivation and engagement in student assignments: The role of choice and relevancy. The Education Trust, 1-14. https://edtrust.org/resource/motivation-and-engagement-in-student-assignments/

Harrington, C. (2024). How much assignment choice do students have? A descriptive study of syllabi. Currents in Teaching and Learning, 15(2), 6-12.

Nichols, G. (2023). Assignment choices in an upper level biology course increase engagement and course satisfaction. The American Biology Teacher, 85(6), 351–354. https://doi.org/10.1525/abt.2023.85.6.351

Oppenheimer, D. (2025, January). Choosing to learn: The importance of student autonomy in post-secondary education. Presentation at the annual meeting of the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology.

A case study alternative to papers, adjusting to recent AI developments

Wed, 28 May 2025 19:54:12 GMT

Brian Stone
Boise State University

Much has been written in the past couple years about how large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude threaten the traditional essay or paper as an assignment. Indeed, at this point LLMs can write in ways that are hard for most instructors to tell apart from human writing (Scarfe et al., 2024). (I invite reflection on the toupee fallacy.) For those instructors who played around with earlier LLMs like ChatGPT 3.5 and haven't kept up with more recent developments and services like ChatGPT Deep Research (powered by the o3 model) or Gemini Deep Research, you may be surprised that the technology has largely moved beyond the point of hallucinated references and vague summarizing.

While frontier models may be financially out of reach for students right now (ChatGPT Pro is $200/month), other services like DeepSeek are stepping in with freely accessible models that bring more up-to-date performance into reach for cash-strapped students. Meanwhile, countless paper-writing apps layered onto existing LLMs are highlighted to students on TikTok and Instagram through targeted marketing and influencer partnerships. Students are definitely using generative AI, and my recent data found that around 60% of students self-report having used AI to cheat (up from around 40% a year earlier in a nearly-identical sample; Stone, 2025).

Instructors have adopted a variety of strategies in response to the easy availability of AI-generated papers, some of which have proven less robust than others to recent technical developments. After briefly surveying this, I will share a specific AI-resistant paper alternative I've experimented with in the past two years.

Instructor Strategies Meet Recent AI Developments

AI detection faces signal detection issues like false negatives and false positives, and research on detectors is not promising at this point (Malik & Amjad, 2025; Tufts et al., 2025). Meanwhile, false accusations damage student-instructor relationships. In my recent survey 11% of students reported being falsely accused, and it may be hitting first-gen students at a higher rate than non-first-gen (Stone, 2025). Regardless, most detection methods fail when AI-generated writing is adjusted with further AI paraphrasing (Sadasivan et al., 2024) and "humanizing" apps are advertised widely to students on social media to make AI papers undetectable.

Some instructors argue we should concentrate on the students who genuinely try: put the responsibility onto students to figure out when AI use helps or harms their learning, or maybe we just need to talk to students and convince them of the value of exercising their own mental muscles. Others decry the costs of developing an adversarial relationship with students, creating anxiety through surveillance, inducing worries about false accusations, and over-emphasizing performance and product over process and learning.

Early attempts to make writing assignments AI resistant are falling to recent technical advances. LLMs can generate outlines or draft papers in parts and stages (with deliberate errors and typos) and directly incorporate instructor comments into iterative drafts. Likewise, focusing assignments on events more recent than the model's training cutoff no longer works given that current models can browse the internet, access daily news, view preprint articles, and analyze [the transcript of] a YouTube/TED talk. Referencing specific details and examples from course readings or slides is easy for LLMs that now allow attachments like slides, articles, or even entire books. Meeting-recording tools like Otter.ai may soon allow a student who wasn't in class to reference specifics from that day's discussion into AI writing.

Many instructors are requiring students to compose in Google Docs with shared editing access or in Word with track changes or to use Grammarly's Authorship tool. This allows an instructor to see time-stamped writing and editing history, and browser plugins like Draftback visualize the editing process to spot odd behavior like pasting in large chunks of text. Nothing stops the student from typing in AI text word-by-word (though this behavior looks different from genuine writing). Yet recent developments in agentic AI like OpenAI's Operator appear already capable of creating and writing into a Google Doc through a process that looks superficially similar to real human writing (writing in bursts, removing and retyping, copying and pasting bits around), so we are back at an arms race.

Some (including myself) are moving the writing process and/or assessment in-person for non-online courses (blue books are back!). However, this limits class time for other activities, limits the length and scope of writing, and can be complicated due to slow or anxious writers, poor handwriting, and accommodations incompatible with time-limited writing. That said, written communication in general and lengthy structured writing in particular may be their own learning objectives, in which case we may just have to satisfice and accept some amount of cheating, as we always have.

Other instructors may directly integrate AI into their courses, ideally in a way that teaches critical AI literacy and ethical usage. AI may be integral to many future careers and become an important part of psychology education specifically (Koumpan & McOwen, 2024; Lim & Lee, 2024). The skillful psychology student should demonstrate adaptability to new technology, says the APA. Maybe we just need to teach students how to credit their AI usage (Albada & Woods, 2024); indeed, the APA style guide tells us how to cite AI. However, while using and integrating AI may become part of psychology student training (including to train critical thinking; Costello et al, 2024), this may not be a good fit for all courses or would require sacrificing other learning objectives. Furthermore, integrating AI in the wrong way may in some cases actively harm learning (Bastini et al., 2024; Gerlich, 2025; Lee et al., 2025; Spatola, 2024; Stadler et al., 2024).

Finally, many instructors are moving away from essays and papers altogether. For example, some have integrated social annotations like Perusall to encourage critical reading. Others have moved toward podcasts, videos, and infographics as paper alternatives, and while these can be great ways to serve and assess learning objectives, these other mediums are still susceptible to AI usage. Not only can recent AI write an engaging and accurate script for a podcast, free services like Google's Notebook LM can generate an entire podcast on any topic imaginable. Likewise, AI can generate the script for a video or presentation and some apps are starting to generate decent slide decks and infographics. At this stage, the average AI-generated project may still be worse than a good student-generated project, but it won't be surprising if that gap shrinks in the near future.

Live Critical Discussion: My Book Club Case Study

Another alternative to essays and papers that could still serve many of the same learning objectives would be critical discussion by students in groups, and that's what I want to focus on for the rest of this piece. As you'll see, it may not completely solve the AI problem, but for now the in-the-moment nature of synchronous discussion seems harder to fake.

Specifically, I want to share the case study of how I moved from having students in my 100-person upper-division cognitive psychology course write a paper on Kahneman's book Thinking, Fast and Slow to having them record book club-style critical group discussions. In both versions of the assignment, students had to reference specifics from the book to make their points, come up with connections to their own life, and talk about their take-aways from the book. In previous years, they were required to incorporate that into a paper about the book; in recent semesters, they have done so as part of their preparation notes for and live contributions during a group discussion.

Specifically, twice during the semester I have groups of roughly seven students meet synchronously over Zoom for 75-90 minutes each time. In my case, they address half of the book in each meeting, but this could be split up differently or done all in one session. The key is requiring them to use Zoom's "record to cloud" feature (or similar for other platforms) so that they can share the entire recording with me afterward.

Their preparation before a book club consists of reading and jotting down notes on each of the assigned chapters, but also doing a deep dive and extra preparation on a subset of chapters which they lead some critical discussion on.

There's no doubt a student could feed the book into an LLM and ask for notes on each chapter (just as some students have historically turned to Cliff's Notes rather than the original source), but such students tend to have much lower-quality contributions and reactions during the discussion. Indeed, the times where preparation notes have looked 'off' (likely auto-generated) have been the times where the same student seems to read from their notes verbatim when 'leading' discussion of their chapters and the times where a student does very poorly and superficially at responding to their peers in the moment. More importantly, a large portion of their grade comes from the quality of their emergent discussion and it's pretty clear when someone has done the reading themselves and can pull some examples or make connections on the fly.

During their synchronous meeting, students are required to contribute actively throughout. They are also encouraged to invite quieter teammates to speak up. After the discussion, they submit the recording link and a post-meeting reflection in which they report on the discussion (e.g., specific examples that changed their mind) and can confidentially name any teammate who went above-and-beyond or seemed entirely unprepared and unengaged. I also have them submit screenshots of their handwritten notes and prep as part of the submission (this can include pictures of annotations in the book).

I watch chunks of the discussions on high playback speed while looking for individual contribution quality, and in the end, I have found the grading time to be far shorter than when assigning papers. In a class of 100, I have 14 videos to skim through, and the individual student's prep and post-meeting reflection can be graded at a fairly quick glance using a rubric. No need to watch an entire video: as I skip around and watch selections on high playback speed, I click through the rubric for each student when I've witnessed a sufficient number of high-quality, on-topic contributions throughout and ensured they aren't reading from a script when discussing their assigned chapters to lead.

I have used this assignment in synchronous courses (in-person and online), in which case the groups meet during our assigned class time in order to keep scheduling simple, but I have also used it in asynchronous courses. In the latter case, it requires some logistical work ahead of time to set up scheduling: I provide a little logistical support in the form of sign-up sheets for possible times and a discussion board to propose alternative times. In other words, for asynchronous courses, they group based on schedule availability rather than me assigning groups first.

In feedback and course evaluations for asynchronous courses, students have told me this one synchronous assignment really increased their sense of belonging and connection to their peers far better than alternatives like discussion boards.

This assignment is certainly not identical to writing a paper about a scholarly book, but for me it has served to retain many of the same learning objectives (around critical reading, communicating, making connections to course concepts). Crucially, it seems harder for students to do well if they haven't done the work (i.e., read the book and given it some thought) because the nature of live critical discussion requires students to respond in the moment to arguments and connections raised by their peers.

While this assignment idea is far from solving the AI issue, I have found it to be a fun updated assignment option that -- for now -- seems better than traditional papers at guaranteeing active and critical engagement with material like a scholarly book.

References

Albada, N. A., & Woods, V. E. (2024). Giving credit where credit is due: An artificial intelligence contribution statement for research methods writing assignments. Teaching of Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/00986283241259750

Bastini, H., Bastini, O., Sungu, A., Ge, H., Kabakci, O., Mariman, R. (2024). Generative AI can harm learning. The Wharton School Research Paper, 1-59. https://doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.4895486

Costello, T. H., Pennycook, G., & Rand, D. G. (2024). Durable reducing conspiracy beliefs through dialogues with AI. Science, 385(6714). https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adq1814

Gerlich, M. (2025). AI tools in society: Impacts on cognitive offloading and the future of critical thinking. Societies, 15(1), 1-28. https://doi.org/10.3390/soc15010006

Koumpan, E., & McOwen, L. (2024). Revolutionizing talent: The path in 21st century workforce transformation. In: V. Salminen (Ed.), Human factors, business management and society vol. 135 (pp. 74–83). AHFE International. https://doi.org/10.54941/ahfe1004932

Lee, H., Sarkar, A., Tankelevitch, L., Drosos, I., Rintel, S., Banks, R., & Wilson, N. (2025). The impact of generative AI on critical thinking: Self-reported reductions in cognitive effort and confidence effects from a survey of knowledge workers. Proceedings of the ACM CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. https://doi.org/10.1145/3706598.3713778

Lim S. C. J., Lee M. F. (2024). Rethinking education in the era of artificial intelligence (AI): Towards future workforce competitiveness and business success. In A. O. J. Kwok & P. Teh (Eds.), Emerging technologies in business (pp. 151–166). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-97-2211-2_7

Malik, M. A., & Aljad, A. I. (2025). AI vs AI: How effective are Turnitin, ZeroGPT, GPTZero, and Writer AI in detecting text generated by ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Gemini? Journal of Applied Learning & Teaching, 8(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.37074/jalt.2025.8.1.9

Sadasivan, V. S., Kumar, A., Balasubramanian, S., Wang, W., & Feizi, S. (2024, February 19). Can AI-generated text be reliably detected? ArXiV preprint. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2303.11156

Scarfe, P., Watcham, K., Clarke, A., & Roesch, E. (2024). A real-world test of artificial intelligence infiltration of a university examinations system: A "Turing Test" case study. PLoS ONE, 1-21. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0305354

Spatola, N. (2024). The efficiency-accountability tradeoff in AI integration: Effects on human performance and over-reliance. Computers in Human Behavior: Artificial Humans, 2(2), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chbah.2024.100099

Stadler, M., Bannert, M., & Sialor, M. (2024). Cognitive ease as a cost: LLMs reduce mental effort but compromise depth in student scientific inquiry. Computers in Human Behavior, 160, 1-7. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2024.108386

Stone, B. W. (2025). Generative AI in higher education: Uncertain students, ambiguous use cases, and mercenary perspectives. Teaching of Psychology. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1177/00986283241305398

Tufts, B. Zhao, X., & Li, L. (2025, February 9). A practical examination of AI-generated text detectors for large language models. ArXiV preprint. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2412.05139

Stop P-Hacking, Start Understanding: The Case for Estimation Statistics

Sun, 11 May 2025 01:59:58 GMT

Mircea Zloteanu
Kingston University London

A considerable amount has been written about the challenges surrounding teaching statistics in psychology, often in a self-reinforcing loop: “We teach these methods because they are expected, and they are expected because this is what is taught.” For decades, critiques of hypothesis testing have highlighted the problems caused by an overreliance on dichotomous decisions, p-values (e.g., p > .05), and the pursuit of statistical significance (Emmert-Streib, 2024). The debate has alternated between calls to “abandon p-values” and retorts that “p-values are fine*” (*where issues are reframed as features rather than bugs). For example, the fact that p-value are affected by sample size, leading to their “dance” in small samples and their certainty of significance in large samples, is often not given the importance it should when teaching statistics (Cumming & Calin-Jageman, 2024). Yet while statisticians and philosophers of science engage in these debates (Chen, et al., 2023), they often overlook a critical audience: people trying to learn this stuff.

One recurring, and valid, critique of null hypothesis significance testing (NHST) is that “it is difficult to understand.” While the process is often outlined in a few easy steps, the reality of frequentist hypothesis testing is much more nuanced and requires a specific kind of thinking that is (arguably) not intuitive to many learners (Rafi & Greenland, 2020).

A good example is simply the probability that p-values refer to. Many students (and researchers) tend to produce a sentence like this: “The p-value is the probability that the null hypothesis is true." This might seem correct, but this is a false statement, referred to as transposing the conditional. A p-value refers to the following probability: P(data | null hypothesis is true). In lay speak, it is the probability of the data given that the null is true. Thus, a p-value only speaks to the compatibility or surprisingness of the data given what we believe to be the state of the world (Rovetta, 2024). However, people often mistakenly think the p-value tells us: P(null hypothesis is true | data). This is the probability that the null hypothesis is true, given the observed data. These two probabilities are not the same and can have real-world consequences if confused (e.g., the prosecutor’s fallacy).

In my own teaching, I have found this to be a common mistake students make; one that is difficult to correct, as the misinterpretation seems to resonate more with people. Even if a diligent student attempts to learn the correct interpretation on their own, the textbook they use may be of no help (Gliner, et al., 2002). A study found 89% of introductory statistics handbooks contain incorrect definitions of p-values (Cassidy, et al., 2019). NHST seems to be a difficult framework to learn.

Having NHST as the default approach for research and publishing in psychology extends beyond researchers to students who are learning these methods. The incentive structure of academic publishing prioritizes statistical significance, leading to questionable research practices (QRPs)—strategies to artificially enhance "statistically significant" results (e.g., p-hacking; Amrhein, et al., 2017). This mentality affects students from the moment they begin learning statistical analyses, fostering “significance anxiety.” Students often worry when their dissertation results yield a non-significant p-value, believing they have done something wrong, that their thinking was incorrect, or that they will fail their degree. Such concerns are unwarranted, as both significant and non-significant results are part of the scientific (and learning) process, but this fact seems at odds with all other signals in our field (Moran, et al., 2023).

Learning Made Easier with Estimation Statistics

The above paints a bleak picture of the NHST framework for teaching and practice. While there are several frameworks that can substitute the traditional approach, most require significant time commitments and adjustments to how we think about experiments (e.g., Bayesian statistics). One alternative that permits a more fluid transition away from p-values while retaining the core components of frequentist thinking is Estimation Statistics (ES). ES, as its name suggests, focuses on estimating effects of interest, contrasting the NHST’s “is there an effect?” mentality. The core question asked by ES is “what is the magnitude and uncertainty of my effect?”

ES shifts the focus to understanding what the study in front of you can say, prioritises communicating effects in a meaningful way, accompanied by their margin of error and practical importance, and focuses on the visual presentation of results. Importantly, the emphasis is placed on meta-analyses and cumulative evidence, reminding researchers that a single study cannot say much. Tools like estimation plots, which display all data points, and meta-analyses make it easier to see patterns across studies rather than fixating on individual p-values. While I cannot do the approach justice in a few paragraphs, I encourage readers to read Introduction to the New Statistics (Cumming & Calin-Jageman, 2024). This has been the handbook I have used for the past 3 years, with great success, especially in my 1st year introduction to statistics classes.

To provide a concrete example of the difference in approaches, let us imagine a study comparing Aerobic and Strength-based exercise for decreased resting heart rate. Now we assume that there is a difference observed between the two groups. The table below provides an example of how this result would be reported under the two approaches:

In NHST, results can be confined to simply reporting the observed p-value (or even just p < α) and claiming that a non-zero effect was found. This says nothing of the size of the effect, its uncertainty, or its relevance. In ES, reporting focuses specifically on the effect size in question, communicating its magnitude, margin of error, and interpretation.

Another advantage of ES is that it deepens students’ understanding of effect size interpretation. Students begin to think more about what effects actually mean, move beyond binary conclusions, and develop a stronger appreciation for the role of uncertainty in statistical analyses and communication. Furthermore, they engage more deeply with their research questions: they ask whether the results make sense and explore concepts such as practical significance. This reflective approach strengthens their analytical and scientific reasoning.

Estimation-based approaches also foster a stronger focus on data visualisation, an essential skill in statistics. Students become more comfortable plotting data and critically evaluating the appropriateness of their figures. They begin to consider diverse visualisations and often uncover hidden patterns or issues in the data that might otherwise go unnoticed. By placing greater emphasis on data visualisation, students develop the habit of thinking critically about effective science communication.

On the left would be a typical bar plot that accompanies the NHST reporting above, with the asterisks denoting a “significant” difference. On the right is an estimation plot (aka. a Gardner-Altman plot) that would accompany the above ES reporting. The ES plot displays all data points, the mean of each group, and confidence intervals per group. Alongside these is the mean difference (the effect) and its uncertainty, with appropriate labels to understand the direction of the comparison. The estimation plot reduces misleading interpretations regarding the variability of the data by illustrating that values can/do occur above the group mean (and higher than one may believe if relying on the standard error bars) and highlights the size and uncertainty of the effect (for details, see Ho et al., 2019).

Switching to ES can improve students’ understanding of statistical concepts. Within my own experience across several cohorts, test scores show marked improvement and first-attempt progression rates increase. Beyond measurable outcomes, students report feeling more confident and frequently comment that it just “makes sense,” to connect the statistics being reported with the information one wants: the effect. As ES’ entire focus is on reporting, interpreting, and visualising the effect of interest and the abstraction of the hypothesis to the statistical procedure is reduced. NHST can be quite opaque in how it treats testing, amounting to a convoluted p-value producing contraption. ES places communication and clarity at the heart of the testing procedure, giving students more confidence in their reporting and understanding. This confidence is reflected in the quality of their work. By focusing on estimation, students engage more directly with the meaning of their results, rather than relying on rote procedures. No longer is the focus on a single number summary being above or below a critical threshold; now, attention shifts to the actual observed effect and how it contributes to our scientific understanding.

Navigating Institutional Resistance to Change

A barrier to adopting ES is the difficulty of institutional change. Transitioning away from entrenched practices like NHST requires supervisors, lecturers, and support staff to not only understand the new methods but also actively support students who use them. This can be challenging, as academic staff often juggle numerous commitments, leaving little time to learn a new framework or adapt their own workflows. Without adequate time, resources, and institutional support, the adoption of ES can feel like an added burden rather than an improvement. Successful implementation requires thoughtful onboarding, with line managers and department heads providing the necessary resources, training, and encouragement. Institutional inertia—where established practices are seen as "good enough"—can slow progress, as some may view the change as unnecessary or disruptive.

Thankfully, adopting ES does not require discarding the foundations of NHST. The two approaches operate under the same principles, and much of the information is interchangeable. For instance, any NHST values—such as p-values and t-values—can be re-computed using the descriptive statistics provided in estimation outputs (see Francis, 2017). This means that switching to estimation as the default teaching framework does not prevent students from understanding or using NHST methods when required. Moreover, the common objection that “real-world publications will demand p-values” is rendered moot; researchers can simply reply “compute it yourself.” By grounding students’ understanding in estimation first, they are better equipped to handle modern and traditional statistical demands without being constrained by the limitations of NHST.

Summary

ES offer a practical and effective alternative to NHST, easily integrating into existing curricula. Students, even those with minimal statistical background, find the approach intuitive and accessible, reducing misunderstandings and improving their ability to interpret and communicate findings. With a wealth of free online resources available (e.g., www.estimationstats.com; esci.thenewstatistics.com), including comprehensive courses, ES is both affordable and adaptable (dabsetr R package, esci module in Jamovi, and soon in JASP). Most importantly, it enhances statistical thinking for all learners, fostering a deeper understanding of data and its interpretation. Adopting ES is a step forward in creating more proficient and critical researchers.

References

Amrhein, V., Korner-Nievergelt, F., & Roth, T. (2017). The earth is flat (p> 0.05): significance thresholds and the crisis of unreplicable research. PeerJ, 5, e3544.

Cassidy, S. A., Dimova, R., Giguère, B., Spence, J. R., & Stanley, D. J. (2019). Failing grade: 89% of introduction-to-psychology textbooks that define or explain statistical significance do so incorrectly. Advances in Methods and Practices in Psychological Science, 2(3), 233-239. https://doi.org/10.1177/2515245919858072

Chen, O. Y., Bodelet, J. S., Saraiva, R. G., Phan, H., Di, J., Nagels, G., ... & De Vos, M. (2023). The roles, challenges, and merits of the p value. Patterns, 4(12). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.patter.2023.100878

Cumming, G., & Calin-Jageman, R. (2024). Introduction to the New Statistics: Estimation, Open Science, and Beyond (2nd ed.). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781032689470

Emmert-Streib, F. (2024). Trends in null hypothesis significance testing: Still going strong. Heliyon, 10(21).

Francis, G. (2017). Equivalent statistics and data interpretation. Behavior research methods, 49(4), 1524-1538. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-016-0812-3

Gliner, J. A., Leech, N. L., & Morgan, G. A. (2002). Problems With Null Hypothesis Significance Testing (NHST): What Do the Textbooks Say? The Journal of Experimental Education, 71(1), 83–92. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220970209602058

Ho, J., Tumkaya, T., Aryal, S., Choi, H., & Claridge-Chang, A. (2019). Moving beyond P values: data analysis with estimation graphics. Nature methods, 16(7), 565-566. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41592-019-0470-3

Moran, C., Richard, A., Wilson, K., Twomey, R., & Coroiu, A. (2023). I know it’s bad, but I have been pressured into it: Questionable research practices among psychology students in Canada. Canadian Psychology / Psychologie canadienne, 64(1), 12-24. https://doi.org/10.1037/cap0000326

Rafi, Z., & Greenland, S. (2020). Semantic and cognitive tools to aid statistical science: replace confidence and significance by compatibility and surprise. BMC medical research methodology, 20, 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12874-020-01105-9

Rovetta, A. (2024). S-values and Surprisal intervals to Replace P-values and Confidence Intervals. REVSTAT-Statistical Journal.

Never would I ever use ChatGPT to create class assignments… or would I?

Fri, 25 Apr 2025 20:52:39 GMT

Rachel T. Walker
University of the Incarnate Word

Have you ever said, “I will never do that!”?

In the past, I told myself I’d never take a psychology course—and then I ended up earning a Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology. I said I’d never teach college classes, but that changed when I started teaching as an undergraduate student. I claimed I’d never do research on human behavior (my focus has always been animal behavior), yet I found myself studying teaching and learning strategies. I was certain I’d never teach an online class, but then COVID hit, and suddenly all my classes were online.

I used to say I’d never use ChatGPT in my teaching. But life has a funny way of challenging our “nevers”! Now, it’s become an integral part of my teaching strategy. The moment I started exploring generative AI tools, I realized their potential to transform educational practices. These tools offer support in designing interactive and inquiry-based lesson plans, making it easier to create engaging content that fosters curiosity and encourages active learning (Moundridou et al., 2024). Inspired by these possibilities, I searched for research articles to understand how generative AI could enhance my approach as an instructor. I even discovered how classifying these tools by their potential applications provides educators with a clear pathway to integrate technology effectively into the classroom (Mollick & Mollick, 2023). It’s amazing how what I once resisted is now helping me grow in ways I never imagined.

When ChatGPT was first released, I took a cautious approach and waited a few years before considering it as a teaching tool. However, as I developed a new course titled Psychology in the Digital World, it became clear that generative AI could significantly enhance the creation of engaging classroom discussions and assignments. The course's focus on the digital world naturally led me to explore the potential of incorporating generative AI to streamline the development of instructional materials.

Let us start at the beginning: How did I use generative AI tools to assist in creating assignments? I had often thought about ways to design in-class discussions that would encourage students to reflect on and engage with content in meaningful ways. For instance, early in my courses, I teach research methods and ethics by providing definitions, examples, and exploring their advantages and disadvantages. I wanted students to go beyond simply understanding the material—I wanted them to process and apply what they had learned by evaluating hypothetical research scenarios. While I knew I could brainstorm ideas on my own, I was not confident in my ability to create scenarios outside my area of expertise. Additionally, I wanted the discussions to have a clear structure and be directly applicable to real-world situations, ensuring students could see the relevance of what they were learning.

While there are various generative AI tools available to assist in this goal, I decided to use ChatGPT. ChatGPT has the potential to enrich student discussions, foster collaboration, and provide more relevant and meaningful learning experiences (Adıgüzel et al., 2024). I was interested in how this generative AI tool could assist with the process of creating: scenarios that could be used in class discussions, written assignments based on the discussion, and grading rubrics for the assignment. I used ChatGPT to learn how to create clear engineering prompts and evaluate scenarios to ensure they met my learning objectives. Additionally, ChatGPT’s application for creating in-class discussion scenarios helped me investigate a potential practical impact on student learning. In these in-class discussion scenarios, I have students interact in small groups. Instructions generated by ChatGPT provided students with clear objectives and directions for their in-class discussion and writing assignment. The small groups then shared their discussion with the class.

Thus far, I have provided a broad overview of how I used ChatGPT to investigate teaching strategies, highlighting its role in generating ideas, refining approaches, and identifying potential challenges. Now, I will provide a more detailed description of the process.

When I began my journey with ChatGPT, I had to learn to be both creative and patient. I first asked a question about how to use artificial intelligence (AI) tools in teaching college students, specifically focusing on the benefits and disadvantages. The benefits included personalized learning assistance, 24/7 availability, reduced administrative burden, and increased engagement and motivation. ChatGPT also highlighted potential disadvantages, such as accuracy and reliability issues, potential over-reliance, and bias in AI responses.

What I found particularly helpful was that ChatGPT provided detailed statements and references within these topics. However, I also learned during this process that it was important to confirm that references came from the original source, as hallucinations in generated content can sometimes introduce false or misleading information.

I then started asking ChatGPT questions to help me brainstorm how I could effectively use it in my courses. First, I asked it to generate discussion questions that would explore the potential uses of ChatGPT in college courses. ChatGPT provided a series of responses, including:

Ethical Considerations: What are the ethical implications of using AI tools like ChatGPT in academic settings? How can we ensure responsible and fair use of AI-generated content?
Critical Thinking: How can instructors incorporate ChatGPT in a way that promotes critical thinking rather than replacing it? What types of assignments or activities could be designed to ensure students actively engage with the material?

While exploring the use of ChatGPT, I became interested in examining how it is utilized in the workplace. I wanted to learn more about how ethics can be considered in a workplace setting. Here is one example I received:

Ethical and Privacy Considerations: What ethical and privacy concerns should organizations address when using AI tools like ChatGPT in the workplace? How can businesses ensure data security and ethical use of AI-generated content?

These types of responses helped me brainstorm more specific questions about how ChatGPT could assist in creating scenarios for in-class discussions.

I thought I was ready to ask ChatGPT to provide me with a research scenario for a psychological study that might or might not involve ethical issues. This is where my creativity and patience had to come into play as I moved forward. When I posted a simple prompt, ChatGPT provided one research scenario: The Effects of Virtual Reality Exposure on Social Anxiety. It included a description of a hypothetical research scenario, bullet points on the study's method, and potential ethical issues.

While this was a good starting point, it was not exactly what I was looking for in my in-class discussion groups. I wanted students to engage with a variety of scenarios and apply what they had learned in class to identify and discuss potential ethical issues, such as confidentiality, deception and bias. ChatGPT had provided a great example of one in-class discussion, but I wanted additional scenarios.

I decided to modify how I asked ChatGPT for these research scenarios. At this stage, I continued refining my questions and clarifying what I needed for the discussion scenarios. One example of these changes was adjusting the style and detail: shaping ChatGPT's responses to match the students' academic level and engagement needs. At the end of this process, I was provided with 10 research scenarios from different areas of psychology, all addressing potential ethical questions related to the intersection of technology and psychology. I also requested ChatGPT to provide support materials to help me effectively implement these scenarios in class, such as teaching instructions, student instructions, discussion questions, and rubrics. At the time of discovering how to use ChatGPT I was unaware of the use of “prompt engineering.” Prompt engineering prompts refer to the process of carefully designing and refining the questions or instructions to get more accurate, relevant, and useful responses. Good prompt engineering helps improve the quality of AI-generated content and reduces errors like hallucinations. My experience served as a valuable lesson.

Did I use everything ChatGPT provided? No. But I was able to modify the content it generated to better fit my specific course needs.

I have provided a broad overview and detailed the process of using ChatGPT; now, I will share examples that illustrate these details.

An Example of How I Generated a Scenario for my Course

One of the learning outcomes was for students to demonstrate an understanding of digital technologies and their applications in research. To achieve this, I wanted to create an in-class discussion on research methods and ethical considerations in studies where technology has been used. These discussions followed the lecture, allowing students to apply and engage with the content.

Let’s investigate each step in my use of ChatGPT. While using ChatGPT, I explored different components, as previously mentioned. First, I prompted ChatGPT with the following statement: Create 10 in-class discussion scenarios centered on hypothetical psychology research scenarios and potential ethical considerations in technology and psychology. After I identified the scenarios I would use, ChatGPT provided a title and project objective for the scenarios.

Title: Exploring Research and Ethics in Technology and Psychology, along with the objective of the project: To critically examine the ethical considerations and challenges associated with conducting research involving technology in psychology.

I asked for instructions that would be helpful in setting up this assignment. ChatGPT provided Instructor Instructions that allowed me to modify the suggested layout for the group of students in my course. Here is my modified version of the Instructor Instructions.

Begin the class by providing a brief overview of the ethical principles and guidelines that govern research involving human participants, such as informed consent, confidentiality, and protection from harm.
Divide the class into small groups of 3-4 students.
Provide each group with a hypothetical research scenario involving the use of technology in psychology.
Instruct the groups to discuss the ethical considerations raised by the scenario, considering both potential benefits and risks to participants.
Encourage students to brainstorm possible solutions or strategies to address ethical concerns while maintaining the integrity of the research.
Allocate 20-30 minutes for group discussion.
After the discussion, each group will present a summary of their key ethical considerations and proposed solutions to the class.
Facilitate a whole-class discussion to explore common themes, differences in perspectives, and additional insights.

This provided ideas about how I might use the scenarios in the classroom. My initial plan was to randomly assign one scenario to each small group. However, during the class discussion, it became apparent that a few groups finished more quickly than others. For those who finished early, I allowed them to select another scenario to discuss. This approach gave students a broader understanding of ethics across diverse types of research scenarios.

ChatGPT provided 10 hypothetical research scenarios, and I selected five that related to anxiety, self-esteem, PTSD, cognitive development and eating disorders.

A study aims to investigate the effectiveness of a smartphone app in reducing symptoms of anxiety in college students. Participants will be asked to use the app daily for eight weeks and complete weekly surveys assessing their anxiety levels. The study is funded by the developer of the app.
Researchers plan to conduct an online survey to explore the relationship between social media use and self-esteem among adolescents. The survey will ask participants to disclose personal information, including their social media accounts and feelings of self-worth.
A psychology lab is conducting an experiment to examine the impact of virtual reality exposure therapy on individuals with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Participants will be immersed in virtual environments simulating traumatic experiences while their physiological responses are monitored.
A longitudinal study seeks to investigate the long-term effects of excessive screen time on cognitive development in children. Participants will be recruited from local schools and asked to complete cognitive assessments annually for five years, with data collected including hours of daily screen time and academic performance.
Researchers plan to conduct a cross-cultural study examining the impact of cultural factors on the manifestation and treatment of eating disorders. Participants from diverse cultural backgrounds will be recruited from multiple countries and asked to complete surveys assessing eating disorder symptoms, body image perceptions, and cultural attitudes towards food and body image.

The following are questions that ChatGPT provided for the in-class discussion and writing assignment on these scenarios.

Discuss the ethical considerations raised by the scenario, considering both potential benefits and risks to participants.
Brainstorm possible solutions or strategies to address ethical concerns while maintaining the integrity of the research.

ChatGPT also provided guidance on creating the rubric for this assignment. The rubric was designed to evaluate each student’s participation, understanding of the topic, depth of ethical analysis, the feasibility and effectiveness of the solutions, and the overall written reflection on the research scenarios. During the in-class discussion I visited each group and observed their discussion activity. I applied the additional aspects on this rubric to assess the written assignment based on the in-class discussions. I provided an example of the rubric that I adapted from ChatGPT.

As mentioned previously, I used ChatGPT to assist in organizing the written guidelines for this writing assignment.

Formatting Guidelines:

Use Times New Roman font, size 12, and double-spacing.
Ensure proper grammar, punctuation, and adherence to formatting guidelines.
The assignment should be at least 2 pages.
Use your own words to write up the paper- Generative AI should not be used, as discussed previously in the course.

Evaluation Criteria: Your assignment will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

Participation in group discussions.
Understanding the topic.
Depth of your ethical analysis.
The feasibility and effectiveness of their proposed solutions.
Written reflection on the ethical considerations raised by the research scenarios and their implications for conducting ethical research in psychology.

Provided below is an example of one of the students’ written reflections of the in-class discussion assignment based on the previous questions (shared with her permission).

The first issue in this hypothetical research scenario is that the app’s developer funds the study. Thus, the study’s results may be biased and manipulated so that more consumers will use the app, and the company will have higher profits. Secondly, the participants in the study will be asked to give out private information, and it is not said who will have access to the college students’ anxiety levels and how this data can be used by researchers or the developer of the app. The last consideration relates to the app’s digital monitoring. More specifically, the scenario does not include any information about how the app works and who is monitoring it. For example, the app’s system could use AI to enhance user experience. In this case, the participants would have to know about the presence of AI in the app and how it stores and uses their private data for analysis.
The researchers could provide an informed consent form with information about what specific data will be collected through the app and who or what (for example, AI) will have access to their anxiety levels and other personal information provided through the app. There should also be a detailed description of possible risks of the app usage and a debriefing form where participants can find information on who to contact if their anxiety levels increase after the study to get assistance. The researchers could also check participants’ anxiety levels before the start of the study to have a basis for the analysis. Lastly, there should be more specifications on the amount of time the app should be used and during what time of day to keep the integrity of the research.

Additionally, I asked ChatGPT for student feedback questions regarding their experience. I did not include these questions in their assessment, but I used students’ feedback to modify future in-class discussions as needed. The questions were:

How effectively did your group work together to discuss and analyze the project?
What helped your group facilitate a productive and respectful discussion?
How can your group improve collaboration and communication in future discussions?

Students reported that the assignment was effective and that they felt comfortable participating in their in-class discussion groups. For example, a student indicated that:

The discussion assignments were very pleasurable and helpful to engage with my classmates. I think discussions let us share our opinions regarding the topics and observe each other’s points of view. To me, it was the most fun and mind-opening activity.

In summary, this was my story of exploring the use of ChatGPT in creating classroom assignments. Through this journey, I discovered how generative AI can serve as a tool to enhance learning experiences, encourage critical thinking, and foster meaningful discussions among students. By using ChatGPT, I was able to design scenarios, create rubrics, and generate discussion questions that aligned with my course objectives. Using generative AI improved my creativity, clarity, and ability to develop in-class activities, which I previously found challenging. This experience also emphasized the importance of adapting and customizing AI-generated content to fit specific classroom needs.

Overall, using ChatGPT in my teaching not only enriched the classroom experience but also demonstrated how technology can be integrated into education in a thoughtful and impactful way. I look forward to continuing to explore its potential and sharing these experiences with others.

References

Adıgüzel, T., Kaya, M. H., & Cansu, F. K. (2023). Revolutionizing education with AI: Exploring the transformative potential of ChatGPT. Contemporary Educational Technology 15(3), ep429. https://doi.org/10.30935/cedtech/13152

Mollick, E., & Mollick, L. (2023). Assigning AI: Seven approaches for students, with prompts. arXiv preprint arXiv:2306.10052. https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2306.10052

Moundridou, M., Matzakos, N., & Doukakis, S. (2024). Generative AI tools as educators’ assistants: Designing and implementing inquiry-based lesson plans. Computers and Education: Artificial Intelligence, 7, Article 100277. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.caeai.2024.100277

Flipped Classroom in Action: Fostering Collaboration and Active Learning

Fri, 28 Mar 2025 20:57:32 GMT

Serena Zadoorian
University of California, Riverside

As a doctoral student, I am always eager to seek opportunities to teach courses. When I was hired to teach an introductory level research methods course at California State University, San Bernardino, I was extremely excited. This lower-division class has been designed to provide students with essential knowledge and skills to conduct and evaluate psychological research, which fosters critical thinking. The topics covered include the philosophy of science, scientific thinking and reasoning, correlation vs. causation, threats to validity, formulating testable research questions and hypotheses, basic concepts of research design, and research ethics. As I was preparing to teach this class, my goal was to ensure that, by the end of the semester, students not only had a comprehensive understanding of research but also demonstrated the ability to apply their knowledge to real-world scenarios. To facilitate this, I incorporated active learning assignments into the curriculum using the flipped classroom method. This method requires students to take responsibility for their learning both inside and outside of the classroom (Prust et al., 2015). Students are expected to engage with the course materials (e.g., recorded lecture videos, chapter readings, quizzes, etc.) prior to class session with minimal support from the instructor. Then, during class hours, students are presented with class activities and discussion to strengthen their understanding of the learning materials (see Al-Samarraie et al., 2020).

The flipped classroom method offers many benefits over the traditional lecture, such as: reviewing the course materials at one's own pace and as many times as needed (Goodwin & Miller, 2013); watching lecture segments individually at the most convenient times (Forsey et al., 2013; Jensen, 2011); and engaging in active learning during class (Daniel & Braasch, 2013; Freeman et al., 2014; Karpiak, 2011). It is important to note that in addition to the benefits, there are also potential drawbacks to consider. For instance, students may find the pre-recorded lecture materials less engaging (Jensen, 2011; Foertsch et al., 2002) or encounter technical difficulties when viewing the materials (especially those with fewer financial or technical resources). Lastly, some students may also face challenges upon anticipating, scheduling, and completing the out-of-class learning (see Dunning et al., 2003).

Flipped Classroom in Action

In a study conducted by Roehling and colleagues (2017) flipped pedagogy was used in an Introduction to Psychology course at a small liberal arts college. The instructors selected four topics, including research methods, to be flipped. Their results revealed that students found the flipped classroom method more interesting than the traditional one. Previous research has also shown that the flipped classroom method could enhance students’ metacognition (Van Vliet et al., 2015) and promote students’ engagement and self-efficacy (see Esson, 2016). Taking these results into account, this method was utilized when teaching my lower-division research method class at CSU San Bernardino. The particular flipped model employed was developed by me, and it was my first time applying it in the classroom.

The class consisted of a total of 38 students, all of whom utilized materials from PsycLearn—a digital resource provided by the American Psychological Association. Students were instructed to review the course materials prior to the class session within a period of five days. PsycLearn enables students to complete each chapter section by section, which makes it easy to navigate through the modules. Each module consists of reading materials, video lectures, and assessments (e.g., quizzes, short-answer questions) with immediate feedback. Additionally, for each chapter, real-world scenarios are included to allow students to apply psychological science to real life. For example, when learning about reliability, students were presented with scenario-based examples that demonstrated how researchers collect and analyze data. They were then required to match each type of reliability with the appropriate scenario.

In addition to completing the online modules, students were asked to post a question related to the course materials and reply to another students’ post on the Canvas discussion board. Pre-class activities took about one and a half to two hours per week. To reward students for their progress, they earned points for completing the online modules and posting questions. Although the majority of students found the class structure easy to follow and said that they benefited from the discussions, some noted in the end-of-year evaluations that the course was time-consuming. Specifically, these students found it challenging to allocate time outside of class to review the course materials.

The in-class materials were presented through PowerPoint slides and focused on the concepts students found most challenging, as reflected in the questions raised on the discussion board. It is important to note that the concepts students find challenging may vary between classes. For this reason, faculty will likely need to adjust the slides to better address these challenges based on the needs of each group. This research methods class met twice a week, with the first day dedicated to reviewing the course materials and encouraging students to ask questions. During the second day, we focused on collaborative work. Students were randomly placed in groups of 4 to 5 to work on active learning assignments designed to help them apply their knowledge to real-world scenarios. For instance, when teaching about ethical guidelines, students were given various research proposals and asked to act as members of the Institutional Review Board committee, deciding whether to approve, reject, or request additional supporting documents form the “researchers.” This activity not only enhanced students’ engagement but it also allowed them to put their knowledge into practice. Furthermore, as part of the course requirement, students were asked to learn about APA formatting. To help them better understand APA style, students were provided with texts that included both in-text citations and references. They were instructed to identify any APA style errors (if present) and provide explanations on how to correct those errors. Although students were asked to work in groups, they were required to submit their own work after each class session.

Students were assigned to the same group for the entire semester. This approach was implemented to facilitate communication and encourage students to collaborate more efficiently. To enhance their learning experience, I actively moved around the classroom, checking in with each group to ensure they were progressing in the right direction. For active learning assignments involving challenging concepts, we reviewed the answers as a class. Reviewing assignments as a class provided students with additional support, reinforcing key concepts. Each week, assignments were submitted via Canvas and graded within five days and returned with constructive feedback. Students were invited to attend office hours to ask any additional questions or for support. It is important to note that if a student was absent for a valid reason, they were granted an extension to complete the assignment independently, with the opportunity to receive guidance and support from the instructor as necessary. Finally, it is important to emphasize that this class does not require a final research paper or proposal. Students majoring in psychology at CSU San Bernardino are mandated to enroll in an upper-division methods course that primarily focuses on writing research papers and proposals. Considering the importance of mastering APA format and the critical steps in writing papers and proposals, I believe the flipped classroom method may not be the best approach. Students may find it challenging and discouraging without a solid foundation. It is essential for students to learn how to write research papers through traditional classroom methods, as academic writing is crucial for success in many upper-division courses and for those pursuing graduate school.

Conclusions

As a faculty, I tend to create a cooperative student-faculty environment in the classroom. Teaching a diverse group of students during my graduate career has made me aware of the importance of creating a supportive learning environment to ensure inclusivity for diverse learners. As shown by previous research, the flipped classroom method has been shown to improve students’ metacognition and promote engagement. Given the lower-division research methods class at CSU San Bernardino, I noticed that students who typically refrained from asking questions during discussion time were actively engaged and communicative with their peers during the active learning assignments.

Furthermore, the flipped method also provides instructors with more time to address questions during class and allows them to integrate active learning assignments, giving students the opportunity to apply the concepts they have learned to real-world scenarios. In the end-of-year evaluations, students described the class as highly engaging and informative, noting that the class activities were both captivating and enjoyable. Moving forward, my next steps include maintaining the same class structure and curriculum as outlined. However, I also aim to gain deeper insights into students’ prior experiences and preferences regarding flipped vs. traditional classrooms. Collecting these data at the beginning of the semester will enable me to better understand my students’ backgrounds and needs and will help me tailor my teaching strategies to align with my students’ preferences.

References

Al-Samarraie, H., Shamsuddin, A., & Alzahrani, A. I. (2020). A flipped classroom model in higher education: a review of the evidence across disciplines. Educational Technology Research and Development, 68(3), 1017-1051.

Daniel, F., & Braasch, J. L. (2013). Application exercises improve transfer of statistical knowledge in real-world situations. Teaching of Psychology, 40(3), 200-207.

Dunning, D., Johnson, K., Ehrlinger, J., & Kruger, J. (2003). Why people fail to recognize their own incompetence. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 12(3), 83-87.

Esson, J. M. (2016). Flipping general and analytical chemistry at a primarily undergraduate institution. In The flipped classroom Volume 2: Results from practice (pp. 107-125). American Chemical Society.

Foertsch, J., Moses, G., Strikwerda, J., & Litzkow, M. (2002). Reversing the lecture/homework paradigm using eTEACH® web‐based streaming video software. Journal of Engineering Education, 91(3), 267-274.

Forsey, M., Low, M., & Glance, D. (2013). Flipping the sociology classroom: Towards a practice of online pedagogy. Journal of Sociology, 49(4), 471-485.

Freeman, S., Eddy, S. L., McDonough, M., Smith, M. K., Okoroafor, N., Jordt, H., & Wenderoth, M. P. (2014). Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 111(23), 8410-8415.

Goodwin, B., & Miller, K. (2013). Research says/evidence on flipped classrooms is still coming in. Educational Leadership, 70.

Jensen, S. A. (2011). In-class versus online video lectures: Similar learning outcomes, but a preference for in-class. Teaching of Psychology, 38(4), 298-302.

Karpiak, C. P. (2011). Assessment of problem-based learning in the undergraduate statistics course. Teaching of Psychology, 38(4), 251-254.

Prust, C. J., Kelnhofer, R. W., & Petersen, O. G. (2015, June). The flipped classroom: It's (still) all about engagement. In 2015 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition (pp. 26-1534).

Roehling, P. V., Root Luna, L. M., Richie, F. J., & Shaughnessy, J. J. (2017). The benefits, drawbacks, and challenges of using the flipped classroom in an introduction to psychology course. Teaching of Psychology, 44(3), 183-192.

Van Vliet, E. A., Winnips, J. C., & Brouwer, N. (2015). Flipped-class pedagogy enhances student metacognition and collaborative-learning strategies in higher education but effect does not persist. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 14(3), ar26.

The Cat is Out of the Bag: Creating a Shelter Cats Training-Focused “Psychology of Learning” Course

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 17:47:53 GMT

Shlomit Flaisher-Grinberg
Saint Francis University

Background:

As a behavioral neuroscientist, I always loved rats. I have seen them master complicated cognitive tasks and wanted my students to have the opportunity to learn, first-hand, just how social, clean, and clever they really are. Thus, I was thrilled when my department chair asked me to teach the “Psychology of Learning” course. Integrating rat-training experiences into the curriculum, my students used learning methodologies to teach their rats to “play soccer,” ride tiny scooters, and complete agility courses, among other tasks. During the semester, my students also learned to care for their rats, and many grew to love them. In fact, many students decided to adopt their rats at the end of the semester.

The Transformation:

Even though the course was effective, and students’ feedback was positive, there was always this one nagging thought I couldn’t get rid of. I was breeding (or purchasing) rats for the course, while animal shelters were overloaded with abandoned, neglected, abused, and betrayed animals. Having created an upper-level shelter dog-training program a few years ago (Flaisher-Grinberg, 2023), and knowing that every year, more than 3 million cats enter animal shelters worldwide (American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, n.d.), I wondered if I could replace the course’s focus on rat training with shelter cat training. I assumed that like the training of rats, the training of cats (and assessment of the training efficacy) will contribute to students’ working knowledge of psychology and enhance their scientific reasoning skills. I envisioned that unlike the training of rats, the training of shelter cats would provide students with an opportunity to apply psychological content to practical, ‘real-world’ problems and empower them to make a difference in their lives and in their communities (American Psychological Association, 2022). Specifically, I wanted my students to use learning concepts to socialize shelter cats and train them towards behaviors that could advance their wellbeing and adoptability (Kogan et al., 2017). I hoped that the ability to improve the quality of lives of shelter cats, while supporting animal shelters in their effort to care for sheltered animals, will also promote my students’ personal and professional development, and therefore produce an impact that will span people and animals alike.

Course Set-Up:

My first step into the transition included the creation of a partnership with a local animal shelter, which was willing to entrust us with their cats and agreed to support the program by providing some of the cats’ needs (crates, blankets, litter boxes, litter, toys, and food). This task was easy, given that we have previously established a reciprocal and mutually beneficial collaboration with one of the animal shelters around us, centered around my students’ efforts to train shelter dogs and write grant applications on behalf of the shelter. Next, I secured permission to house shelter cats on campus premises and attained relevant protocols. This task was more complicated and took almost a year to conquer. Specifically, I worked with our Business Office to ensure insurance coverage for our course, with our Office of Risk Management to create appropriate liability agreement documents, with the Students Health Center to generate allergy screening/management procedures, and with the Biology Department to identify a classroom appropriate for the course. I submitted detailed care protocols to our Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee, and an internal grant application ($1,000) to our Office of Advancement. The grant allowed me to purchase cats’ carriers, leash/harness kits, click sticks, “place” mats, and training treats. Later, I was able to sustain the program financially via the addition of minor lab fees to students’ course enrollment ($20/student). Given that my institution has a small vivarium, I was able to transform the rats’ space into a cat-dedicated room, supplied with cat trees, hiding boxes, and toys. Finally, I recruited a group of TAs, trusted with cleaning/feeding protocols (for additional information about the course, see Flaisher-Grinberg, 2024).

Course Delivery:

The integration of cats into the curriculum was accomplished via a variety of classroom activities, four lab sessions, and a 3-part research assignment. The labs focused on the demonstration of 1) habituation processes, 2) classical conditioning, 3) operant conditioning, 4) generalization and discrimination procedures, and the research assignment was built around a student-generated cat training project. During the labs (and the following weeks) students learned to gently handle the cats, respect their personalities, and interact with them in a way that enabled both cats and students to calm down and enjoy each other’s company. The cats learned that the carriers, “place” mats, click sticks and harnesses predicted the availability of treats, and later, that entering the carriers, sitting on the “place” mats, following the click sticks, or wearing the harnesses, awarded them with treats. Concurrently, the TA team utilized similar methodologies to facilitate cats’ nails trimming, ears cleaning, and teeth brushing. Since many cats associate their carriers with aversive consequences (e.g., a visit to the vet), are wary of wearing a harness (even if for a nice walk outdoors), and despise being groomed, I hoped that these tasks will be beneficial to both the cats and their future adopters. With the intent of introducing my students to the growing field of animal-assisted interventions (e.g., the incorporation of animals into human-oriented therapeutic/educational processes, Fine & Weaver, 2018), the final lab session took place within the institutions’ clinical educational facility set as a simulated hospital. During the lab, the cats generalized previously learned tasks, demonstrated via their ability to walk in a harness into the medical environment, sit on their “place” mats by “mock patients”, follow the click stick to execute entertaining tricks, and spread love and happiness all around. For their research assignments, students selected a research question (“Can a cat learn to…?”), designed a training methodology, chose assessment parameters (e.g., latency to complete the task, number of correct responses, etc.) that were evaluated before and after the training, collected and analyzed the data, wrote an APA-style research paper describing their project, and disseminated their findings to their classmate via a 10-minute presentation.

Findings:

The course, in its shelter-cats-integrated format, was offered for the first time in the spring of 2023. It was repeated in the spring of 2024 and will be offered again in the spring of 2025. Set as a mandatory curricular item for psychology majors and an elective for students in other majors, the course is well-enrolled, attracting students with interest in health sciences, biological sciences, and a variety of other disciplines. Each iteration thus far included 40-48 students (across two sections), and six cats. Depending on the cat’s needs and personality (e.g., outgoing or shy), each cat was assigned to one or two students’ groups of 3-4 students per group. This structure seems suitable, as students’ and cats’ number accommodate the size of the classroom/cat-room, and since in this fashion the cats receive adequate (yet not overwhelming) attention and students are able to coordinate their training time with their group members to maximize the efficiency of their work. Although protocols allow students with allergies to substitute the course for another alternative within the department’s curriculum, to date, none of the students who took the course had severe cat allergies, and the three that had minor allergies chose to enroll in the course while complying with safety regulations (i.e., wearing lab coats, gloves, and face masks during their interactions with the cats). Most of the cats learned most of the tasks (some cats dislike walking in a harness, while some seem to like it), and students were able to design research projects that involved a variety of tasks (giving a ‘high five’, “playing soccer”, etc.). The students indicate that they truly like their cats, enjoy training them, and are proud of both their cats’ and their own accomplishments throughout the semester. Students attest that they recognize the positive impact that they make on shelter cats and on the local community and that they feel that the course contributes to their educational, professional, and personal development. Representatives of our shelter partner indicate that they are thrilled with the partnership and desire to see it continue and develop in the future. Various faculty, staff, and administrators also enjoy the presence of cats on campus, and I often find myself engaging in conversations about our cats and about pets and animals in general. Importantly, regardless of age, sex, behavioral tendencies, and health status, the cats seem to prosper in the campus environment. Moreover, up to date, all cats in the program have been successfully adopted by their student trainers, other students in the course, campus community and the general community.

New Directions:

Given the popularity of the cats-integrated course, the success of the collaboration with our local animal shelter, and the cats’ high adoption ratio, the fall of 2024 marked the beginning of a new, shelter-cats-integrated program. In the past few months, we identified a small room at the campus library that did not contribute to the air circulation within the library, received all necessary permissions, gathered equipment, and brought shelter cats to live in our own “Library Cat Room.” I trained a team of eight students who previously took my cat-focused course to clean, feed, and socialize the cats, and created ‘meet-n-greet’ sessions (3-4 hours/week) which enabled the campus community to spend time with the cats (the cats are not allowed outside the room). Although the program is very new, the three cats that spent the past few months living in our library environment have already brought much joy to students, faculty, staff and administration. All of them were successfully adopted by the end of the fall semester, and it is our hope that our program will continue and develop in future years.

References:

American Psychological Association (2022). APA guidelines for the undergraduate psychology major. Version 3.0. APA. www.apa.org/ed/precollege/about/psymajor-guidelines.pdf

American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (n.d.). Pet Statistics. Retrieved January 31, 2023, from https://www.aspca.org/helping-people-pets/shelter-intake-and-surrender/pet-statistics

Fine, A. H., & Weaver, S. J. (2018). The human-animal bond and animal-assisted intervention. In M. V. D. Bosch, & W. Bird (Eds.), Oxford textbook of nature and public health: The role of nature in improving the health of a population (pp. 132-138). Oxford University Press.

Flaisher-Grinberg, S. (2023). Community-Engaged Pedagogy in the Psychology Classroom: Shelter Dogs go to College. Teaching of Psychology, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/00986283231191748

Flaisher-Grinberg, S. (2024). Creating a College-Based Shelter Cats’ Training Program. Journal of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, IAABC. 29(1). Retrieved from: https://journal.iaabcfoundation.org/sfu-cats/

Kogan, L., Kolus, C., & Schoenfeld-Tacher, R. (2017). Assessment of Clicker Training for Shelter Cats. Animals, 7(10), 73. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani7100073

Incorporating Community or Campus Engagement into the Classroom

Mon, 13 Jan 2025 23:58:56 GMT

Chelsea Romney
Brigham Young University

While attending a teaching seminar at my university on the importance of experiential learning,(1,2) I found myself experiencing academic discipline FOMO (fear of missing out). A dance professor explained, “Instead of having students learn the steps of the cha-cha from their textbook, we use our classroom time to actually dance the cha-cha.” I thought to myself, if only I were in a discipline that lent itself so well to experiential learning. How could I possibly demonstrate concepts like bias, group dynamics, or social cognition in my upcoming social psychology course? Surely, such erudite concepts weren’t meant for experiential learning methods.

Later, as I was preparing a lecture on the “Psychology of Law” chapter of the course textbook, I realized that I might have discovered my own version of the cha-cha. I began developing a plan for students to view live courtroom proceedings to see how social psychology influences the practice of law. I knew that court was a public place that could be visited by civilians, and that all arraignments and trials were public records. However, we know from community-based participatory research (CBPR) that groups, especially academic groups, should take care when visiting or studying community organizations to respect the functioning of the organization. Proper CBPR involves an equitable approach where both the academic group and the community stakeholders both benefit from the interactions. (3)

I met with the local city justice court judge to determine how they might benefit from having students observe court. Fortunately, the judge was enthusiastic about having students in the court and was particularly motivated by the idea of collecting data to determine how the court was functioning. Specifically, the judge had already used a validated national court survey(4) to assess the accessibility and fairness of the court from the customers’ perspective and was enthusiastic at the idea of students from the local university assisting in the collection of a new batch of these surveys. Since another learning outcome of the course was to increase the students’ understanding of the research process, collecting data for the court created an additional opportunity for experiential learning in my class.

The judge and I worked together to determine a series of interactions, assignments, and specific statistical associations we wanted to assess in the outcomes of the validated survey to mutually benefit our organizations. The course courtroom assignment followed this timeline:

1. The judge visited our classroom, provided a guest lecture related to course material, described the purpose of the validated court survey, and provided information about proper conduct while visiting the court.

2. 25 students visited the courtroom in pairs of two to collect data throughout the semester. During their court visit, they also completed a courtroom observation assignment where they identified at least three social psychological phenomena occurring in the court in a 2-page paper. This encouraged them to think critically about course concepts and gave their visit structure when they weren’t collecting data.

3. With instruction, students completed data analyses with the data collected from the validated survey and wrote brief research papers on their findings for course credit.

4. The Judge visited the classroom again for the students to deliver their findings in the form of oral presentations that were graded as part of the course.

Students reported how observing court in person and engaging with court customers and employees improved their understanding of course concepts. One student wrote,

“I was able to understand the social psychology vocabulary much better because I could see at the court different concepts like emotional intelligence, intrinsic and extrinsic motivation in the court customers, receptivity, yielding (William McGuire’s model of persuasion), and stigma.”

Another student made sense of course concepts through observing the Judge,

“The biggest social psychological principle that I was able to see while watching the Judge’s court was his high emotional intelligence. The book breaks up emotional intelligence into four different parts. The first was the ability to perceive your emotions and the emotions of those around you. This was definitely something that was practiced by the Judge as he was able to recognize the way that others felt and how his emotions were influencing his judgements. To have awareness of how others feel is a great quality to have in the court system because how people feel influences the way that people perceive fairness and furthermore their actions after the court hearing. The second type of emotional intelligence is facilitating thought which is described as the ability to generate an emotion and then regulate that emotion. The third is understanding emotion which explains that a person is able to acknowledge an emotion and recognize when that emotion switches from a simple emotion to a complex emotion. The last type of emotional regulation is called managing emotions which explains that an individual is open to theirs and others emotions and they are able to understand them, along with being able to grow and develop because of them. I saw the Judge demonstrate each portion of emotional intelligence in his courtroom and that is one of the reasons why so many court customers perceive him as fair.”

Due to the experiential nature of the courtroom project, students also gained additional insights beyond the course assignments. One student shared their initial apprehension about the court environment, stating,

“I had a lot of preconceived notions about court even though I had never been to a court before in real life. I thought the layout made it easy for people to learn observationally because they are seated in the courtroom until it is their turn to speak. I liked this composition because I feel like it helped them know what to say.”

Another student noted,

“While spending time at the court, I was surprised that the people who worked there were normal people. They even laughed and talked and joked around with each other. I wished that other people got to see the human side of the judge, the cops, and the staff who work in the court and not as people who want to give you the harshest sentence that they can.”

And lastly, students learned about human nature and increased their awareness of the complexity of human behavior. One student reflected,

“While at court, I saw a case where a son was trying to protect his mother from a violent ex-boyfriend by hitting the man with a skateboard. He was charged with very heavy charges. Through previous meetings and litigation between the Judge and the attorney, they ended up dropping the charges and allowed him to pay a fine of $100 and he got his bail money back. I saw the family hugging and crying in the parking lot. I was very touched by this experience that sometimes people may commit crimes to protect others.”

Since the courtroom assignment, I have applied the principles of community-based participatory research as a base for experiential learning assignments for other courses. Recently, I taught a Health Psychology course with an emphasis on the health benefits of social inclusion. I targeted on campus clubs as an effective venue to study student social engagement. I followed the lead of the stakeholder, the overall campus clubs staff coordinator, to design an assignment that would benefit both the students and the campus clubs. Like the judge, the clubs coordinator was also interested in data to understand how the clubs were functioning. Students selected clubs and administered surveys to assess the effect of club attendance on outcomes like well-being, happiness, and belonging. The assignments followed a similar pattern as the courtroom study with a guest lecture from the clubs coordinator, instruction on research methods, data collection, and a final presentation to the stakeholder. I believe this format could be applied to courses that cover other types of content and I plan to implement a similar project in my Psychological Statistics course.

In conclusion, incorporating community or campus engagement into the classroom provides invaluable experiential learning opportunities for students, fostering a deeper understanding of academic concepts through real-world application. By engaging with community stakeholders, such as local courts or campus clubs, students not only gain practical experience but also contribute to the community, creating a mutually beneficial relationship. These experiences challenge students' preconceived notions, enhance their critical thinking, and provide them with a nuanced perspective on human behavior and social dynamics. Ultimately, integrating experiential learning through community or campus engagement enriches the educational experience, promoting both academic growth and social responsibility, and you don’t even have to dance the cha-cha in front of your students.

References

1 Kuh, G. D. (2012). High-impact educational practices: What they are, who has access to them, and why they matter. Peer Review, 14(3), 29-30.

2 Kolb, D. A. (1984). Experiential learning: Experience as the source of learning and development. New Jersey: Prentice-Hall.

3 Fontaine, S. (2006). Journal of Higher Education Outreach and Engagement, 11(2), 45.

4 https://www.ncsc.org/courtools/trial-court-performance-measures

Cultivating a Growth Mindset in our Students to Facilitate their Resilience and Success

Fri, 20 Dec 2024 21:39:18 GMT

Dina Gohar
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor

People with a growth mindset—the belief that intelligence and other abilities can develop through effort—enjoy numerous benefits inside and outside of the classroom (Dweck, 2006, 2017). For example, students with a growth mindset are more likely to persist when challenged and to succeed in college with higher grades and course completion rates (Yaeger at al., 2019), and even enjoy greater well-being overall (Tao et al., 2022). A growth mindset can be particularly beneficial for students from historically underrepresented or marginalized groups who are likely to face systemic barriers, such as those related to race, socioeconomic status (SES), or first-generation status (Fink et al., 2018). Such students often encounter additional hurdles that can impact their educational journey, from stereotypes to limited resources, which a growth mindset can help them be resilient enough to overcome. For example, an online intervention encouraging high school students to view intellectual abilities as capable of growth through effort, new strategies, and seeking help significantly improved grades among lower-achieving students, especially when the school environment aligned with the growth mindset message (Yaeger et al., 2019).

However, a growth mindset is NOT a panacea, and not having one is far from the only reason why marginalized students may struggle academically. Overemphasis on individual effort might obscure structural and systemic factors that impact student success, such as discrimination and limited resources. Although many studies suggest that those who are marginalized or from low SES may benefit most from adopting a growth mindset, some studies suggest the opposite (Sisk et al., 2018). For example, Bernardo (2020) found that a growth mindset was positively related to learning outcomes only among higher SES students, highlighting the importance of social resources supporting students’ efforts to improve for the benefits of their growth mindset to be realized. How do we ensure these interventions are successful for the students who stand to benefit from them the most?

Growth mindset interventions can sometimes backfire for disadvantaged students if not implemented carefully enough to avoid encouraging self-blame or shame for failure. As Hoyt and Burnette’s (2020) “double-edged sword model” highlights, growth mindset messaging can not only yield positive outcomes due to increased self-efficacy (and reduced social essentialism), but also indirectly predict adverse outcomes due to more self-blame and adopting personal responsibility for problems. Therefore, in stigmatizing contexts and in isolation, differentiating responsibility for a problem from expectations for potentially managing the problem is integral for positive growth mindset-related outcomes. For instance, frame marginalized students’ academic difficulties within broader societal contexts. Instead of saying "Your grade is a result of your effort,” you could say “Your grade reflects your current performance, which can be negatively impacted by systemic inequalities that we can hopefully address together.” Rather than saying “if you work harder, you will improve,” acknowledge that “improvement often requires both effort and support. Let's explore the resources available to you, such as tutoring services, my office hours, and study groups, that can complement your hard work so it is reflected in your final grade.”

In addition to promoting a growth mindset in our students without encouraging self-blame or false hope, we should discuss and actively address systemic barriers that can affect their performance to the best of our ability. We can truly empower our students by providing the resources they need to reap the benefits of a growth mindset while advocating for structural changes that support all students.

Your Course Syllabus Can Cultivate A Growth Mindset

As educators, we have the power to cultivate a growth mindset in our students without encouraging self-blame for failure, which can facilitate their resilience and success. How can we do so through small changes in our classes so that we don’t burn ourselves out? My online experiment (N = 200) suggests that an easy way to cultivate a growth mindset in the classroom, whether online or in person, is through our course syllabus as the first point of contact with our students. Compared to those randomly assigned to read a conventional syllabus, students who read a growth mindset-based syllabus scored significantly higher on Dweck’s Growth Mindset Scale afterward (Gohar, 2024). Moreover, students perceived a typically dreaded Research Methods course and its instructor more positively if the syllabus was growth-mindset oriented, much like students perceive a course and its instructor more positively if the syllabus is detailed (Saville et al., 2010), learner-centered (Richmond et al., 2016), inclusive (Fuentes et al., 2020), and warm in tone (Gurung & Galardi, 2021). More specifically, students reported more desire to take and less anxiety about a growth-mindset based course, which was perceived as less challenging, too. This was especially the case for students who identified as female or lower income, who even expected higher grades in the growth-mindset based course–perhaps helping to mitigate stereotype threat. Students also perceived the growth-mindset based instructor as more qualified, reasonable, and nice, which is an added bonus.

So, what does a growth-mindset based syllabus look like? Using language that emphasizes the potential for growth when describing your learning outcomes (e.g., “grow in your ability to think critically”), assignments, and course (e.g., “This course is challenging, but I truly believe that every student is capable of succeeding with enough effort and persistence, and it is my job to help everyone do well!”). I even include an explicit message that, “studies suggest that the more you challenge yourself to learn, the more your brain actually grows! So, even difficult things like learning how to do research and statistics get easier as you get smarter over time,” which I highly recommend doing at least for research methods and statistics courses that can cause math anxiety and stereotype threat (Luo & Chen, 2024).

It is not enough to use growth mindset facilitating language in your syllabus, though. Your course design needs to reflect growth mindset practices to show students that you really mean it. it can be hard for students to adopt and sustain a growth mindset if they don’t have the chance to make mistakes without hurting their final grades. Therefore, it is critical to use recursive assessment and grading that actually rewards students’ effort and improvement as well as their performance whenever possible. For example, students can earn an “effort score” that is incorporated into their final grades on assignments, as described in the figure below.

Click here for a link to a copy of the post with figures.

If you want to make sure that your students actually read the Syllabus that you put so much time into, at the beginning of the course, you can have them annotate the syllabus with their questions or comments as a graded assignment, which I highly recommend.

More Tips for Cultivating a Growth Mindset in Your Students

How else can you help your students develop a growth mindset to reap the benefits while avoiding potential pitfalls? First, if you tend to believe that ability is fixed (you can find out by taking the short linked Mindset Quiz), work on cultivating more of a growth mindset yourself because your mindset can impact your students’ mindset and thus their performance. For example, STEM faculty with a fixed mindset inspire less student motivation and have larger racial achievement gaps in their classes (Canning et al., 2019). For maximal benefit, students’ growth mindsets must also be supported by their teacher’s own growth mindsets (Yaeger et al., 2022), and ideally, peer norms, which can be influenced by teachers. Model a growth mindset for your students by sharing your mistakes and struggles and how you learned from or overcame them for inspiration.

Second, praising effort and process, rather than performance or ability, can effectively foster a growth mindset and improve student performance, especially after setbacks (Mueller & Dweck, 1998). For example, instead of saying things like "you're a really great writer,” say something like "I can tell you put a lot of thought into this paper." Rather than just praising students for performing well, thank them for the hard work they put into the assignment, highlighting the connection between invested effort and improved performance if relevant. Third, it can be helpful to normalize struggle and “failure” as part of learning and emphasize the opportunity for growth, especially in the face of adversity, which can even facilitate post-traumatic growth beyond pre-trauma levels (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 2004). Simply reminding students that “everyone makes mistakes” can go a long way to normalize them. However, remember to acknowledge the barriers faced by disadvantaged students to prevent them from blaming themselves for struggling and work to address those barriers whenever possible.

Fourth, help your students develop self-compassion, especially if they tend to be overly self-critical when they make mistakes. Neff’s website, selfcompassion.org, has great free exercises for cultivating more self-compassion. Encourage your students to review their mistakes in a nonjudgemental fashion and to learn from them by rewarding their doing so. Fifth, students can be instructed to say “stop” and breathe when their fixed mindset voice is getting out of hand and to add “yet” to the end of their fixed mindset statements to reap the benefits (e.g., “I can’t do this… YET!”). Finally, remember that a growth mindset isn’t about having “positive thoughts only” but about embracing challenges and learning from our mistakes because we believe in our capacity to improve.

Best of luck as you carefully nurture a growth mindset in your students and empower them to achieve success inside and outside of the classroom as lifelong learners!

References

Bernardo, A. B. I. (2020). Social dominance goals, perceived socioeconomic status, and the academic achievement of Filipino students. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 50(5), 269-282.

Canning, E. A., Muenks, K., Green, D. J., & Murphy, M. C. (2019). STEM faculty who believe ability is fixed have larger racial achievement gaps and inspire less student motivation in their classes. Science Advances, 5(2), eaau4734. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.aau4734

Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset: The new psychology of success. Random House.

Dweck, C. (2014, November). The power of believing that you can improve [Video]. TED Conferences.

Dweck C.S. (2017). Mindset: Changing the Way You Think to Fulfill Your Potential . Little Brown Book Group.

Fink, A., Cahill, M. J., McDaniel, M. A., Hoffman, A., & Frey, R. F. (2018). Improving general chemistry performance through a growth mindset intervention: Selective effects on underrepresented minorities. Chemistry Education Research and Practice, 19(3), 783-806. https://doi.org/10.1039/C7RP00244K

Fuentes, M. A., Zelaya, D. G., & Madsen, J. W. (2020). Rethinking the course syllabus: Considerations for promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion. Teaching of Psychology, 48(1), 69-79.

Gohar, D. (2024). A growth mindset-based syllabus improves students’ perceptions of taking and succeeding in research methods. Manuscript in preparation.

Gurung, R. A. R., & Galardi, N. R. (2021). Syllabus tone, more than mental health statements, influence intentions to seek help. Teaching of Psychology, 49(1), 32-37.

Hoyt, C. L., & Burnette, J. L. (2020). Growth mindset messaging in stigma-relevant contexts: A double-edged sword? Journal of Social Issues, 76(3), 645-667.

Luo, Y., & Chen, X. (2024). The impact of math-gender stereotypes on students' academic performance: Evidence from China. Journal of Intelligence, 12(8), 75. https://doi.org/10.3390/jintelligence12080075

Mueller, C. M., & Dweck, C. S. (1998). Praise for intelligence can undermine children's motivation and performance. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75(1), 33-52.

Richmond, A. S., Slattery, J. M., Mitchell, N., Morgan, R. K., & Becknell, J. (2016). Can a learner-centered syllabus change students' perceptions of student–professor rapport and master teacher behaviors? Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 2(3), 159-168.

Saville, B. K., Zinn, T. E., Brown, A. R., & Marchuk, K. A. (2010). Syllabus detail and students' perceptions of teacher effectiveness. Teaching of Psychology, 37(3), 186-189.

Sisk, V. F., Burgoyne, A. P., Sun, J., Butler, J. L., & Macnamara, B. N. (2018). To what extent and under which circumstances are growth mind-sets important to academic achievement? Two meta-analyses. Psychological Science, 29(4), 549-571.

Tao, V. Y. K., Li, Y., & Wu, A. M. S. (2022). Growth mindset and psychological well-being: The mediating role of personal growth initiative and self-efficacy. Journal of Happiness Studies, 23(3), 1187-1203.

Tedeschi, R. G., & Calhoun, L. G. (2004). Posttraumatic growth: Conceptual foundations and empirical evidence. Psychological Inquiry, 15(1), 1-18.

Yeager, D. S., Carroll, J. M., Buontempo, J., Cimpian, A., Woody, S., Crosnoe, R., ... & Dweck, C. S. (2022). Teacher mindsets help explain where a growth-mindset intervention does and doesn't work. Psychological Science, 33(1), 18-32.

Yeager, D. S., Hanselman, P., Walton, G. M., Murray, J. S., Crosnoe, R., Muller, C., ... & Dweck, C. S. (2019). A national experiment reveals where a growth mindset improves achievement. Nature, 573(7774), 364-369.

Assessment of Research Methods Students’ Paper Drafts: Encouraging Self-Evaluation and Managing Professor Workload

Wed, 06 Nov 2024 02:33:01 GMT

Jennifer Samson
Queens University of Charlotte

I love teaching Research Methods. When I accepted my present position, I enthusiastically agreed that this would be my primary teaching responsibility. (I think they might have expected me to run away screaming instead.) Our year-long methods sequence is relatively unique in that every year, my 25 or so students propose, design, implement, and report on their own projects in any area of Psychology. Every year there are some unbelievably thoughtful, creative, and interesting projects. But also every year, I have to drag myself through grading the drafts. Even the “good” projects. Especially when I feel like I’m providing the same feedback on draft after draft with little to no improvement.

How can we help students understand the writing process as iterative instead of “one [draft] and done”? How can we as instructors help students become effective critics of their own writing? How can we keep our grading load manageable and still provide students with the feedback they need? This essay describes trials and errors, lessons learned, and lessons I’m still learning in my search for the elusive answers to these questions.

Spoiler: There’s not one easy solution.

Background:

The year-long research methods sequence I teach is required for all Psychology majors in their junior year at my small, liberal arts university. By the time they get to me, students have completed their first-year writing sequence as well as the specific course prerequisites, including Introduction to Psychology, Statistics and a class we call Information Literacy – reading and writing in a professional Psychology setting, including a focus on literature review. Ultimately, the majority of my students are relatively well-prepared for college-level work but are still learning to write the type of professional academic paper required for the course. It is also worth noting that a sizable minority every year take Information Literacy simultaneously with the fall semester of Methods and so need extra support in my course.

The research methods sequence is centered around students’ individual empirical projects. In the fall, students complete a four-credit class where we delve into the study of research, emphasizing design for association versus cause/effect and critiquing for different types of validity (designing and critiquing research is an explicit goal for undergraduate students set out by the American Psychological Association, APA, 2023). Concurrently with the class, they complete a two-credit-hour lab where they write a proposal to identify a research question and propose methods to answer it. In the spring, students complete a second four-credit class where they collect data, analyze it, and revise/extend their proposal so it becomes a complete, journal-style empirical paper. They also present their work in a poster session at a local undergraduate conference. The completion of not only the proposal but the entire project and the opportunity for every student to present in a conference setting is a hallmark of our program.

What I Tried:

At the beginning of last academic year, I knew I needed to do something different. An influx of late transfers caused the class size to swell by almost a third, and I knew that, short of learning to clone myself, there was no way I could keep up with marking everyone’s drafts in a timely manner (see Ambrose et al. 2010, about importance of constructive, timely feedback for student motivation). Meanwhile, I had already been looking at ways to increase student buy-in for writing as an iterative process and to increase students’ meta-cognitive skills as evaluators of their own work (see Ambrose et al., 2010; Bain, 2004). Therefore, I implemented the following procedures.

I cancelled lab at key points in the semester (e.g., as outlines were coming together) to instead conduct 20-30 minutes oral check-ins with each student individually during the pre-writing process. In these meetings, we discussed how the ideas were going to be organized within the paper. Meetings, and requiring outlines in the first place, hopefully got students thinking about their papers earlier in the semester than many would have otherwise and encouraged them to engage in prewriting organization rather than diving right into drafting as many are prone to do). I returned minimal written feedback for these preliminary steps and marked primarily completion credit; if they did it thoughtfully and in a timely manner, they earned all the available points for that preliminary step.

So far, what I was trying was not very different from what I’d done previously. But then, after students turned in their drafts of each section (e.g., literature review, methods), instead of marking it and returning it, I asked them to complete a short self-evaluation. The open-ended questions on the self-evaluation prompted them to focus on the areas of content and organization, common mechanical issues, time management completing the draft, and goals for revision. I then met with each student one-on-one to discuss their drafts. In these 30-minute meetings, we read the draft together and marked some key suggestions using Word’s track changes and comments features. I often used their self-evaluation as a starting place, especially if they had identified strengths or areas for improvement similar to those I noticed. I made a point to not mark the whole paper, but targeted examples. For instance, if my suggestion was for the student to use more parenthetical and fewer narrative (“___ found”) citations, we edited one or two paragraphs together to show them what that might look like.

At the end of these meetings, we completed the grading rubric (separate from the self-evaluation) together. Students left the meeting with their marked-up paper and (after my first round of meetings where I learned it would be more efficient to record the score and send it on the spot) the completed rubric. Working together to evaluate the drafts not only got them graded more efficiently, but provided students ownership in their learning process and therefore, theoretically, more buy in for the learning process (see Doyle, 2011). The assessment was now part of the learning process (see Bain, 2004).

At the end of the semester, students submitted not only their final paper, but also a revision reflection (similar to a revise and resubmit letter to the editor) in which they described the feedback they received, what they changed, and what they didn’t change (and why). On this revision reflection, I prompted them to describe the feedback they’d received on each section of their paper and how they’d incorporated it (or not).

Conclusions So Far:

Overall, I would say my experiments were a success and this is moving in a good direction, although maybe not there yet. (Will it ever be perfect? Probably not.) Many of the self-evaluations were thoughtful and, anecdotally, I believe more of the students at least registered and gave some thought to the feedback they received. By the end of the academic year, after meetings for the literature review, methods, and results, I noticed that students were doing more of the evaluating as we discussed the rubric for their discussion drafts, rather than waiting for me to tell them what score they earned. I asked the class for their thoughts and, even on the anonymous evaluations, most of them chose not to comment (I’ll take that as, “no complaints”). One student did tell me that they liked having meetings instead of a paper returned so they could ask clarification questions.

From a professor workload point of view, this approach was exhausting during meeting weeks, when I often had 6-8 meetings per day for several days in a row, but generally much more efficient than grading and returning papers. There were a few (less than 5%) students who delayed scheduling their meetings and/or with whom I had to make special arrangements for an evening or weekend due to athletics, jobs, or other outside commitments taking up most of their days, but we made it work. In the future I should probably be clearer that the onus is on the student to take more initiative and get these scheduled (aka your poor planning is not my emergency, schedule early to have enough choices that will work for you).

In part because I was forced to stay on schedule, students got their feedback in a timelier manner, even though I spent about the same amount of time on each student (30 minutes per paper to mark vs. 30 minutes meetings). I’m hopeful, although I only have anecdotal evidence thus far, that the feedback was clearer. For example, instead of writing a comment, “be sure to clarify the main idea of this paragraph,” I was able to ask students face to face, “what’s the main idea of this paragraph supposed to be? Yes. Write that.” I am also hopeful that feedback was deeper. It’s easy when I’m reading a paper to get caught up in marking the details, but I found with a one-on-one conversation, I could focus more on discussing the bigger pictures of organization and what points they were trying to make. One area where I saw a marked change was in reference formatting; in a face-to-face situation, I could point to a correctly formatted example and say, “this is correct. How is it different from this other one [that has an error]?”

In short, I will keep this self-evaluation and oral feedback approach, but with some tweaks. First, I will likely spend some time scaffolding useful self-evaluation, so maybe more students will use the self-evaluation to their best advantage instead of (as I’m sure some did) seeing it as another box to check. For instance, I might do the first self-evaluations in class on the day after drafts are due and maybe show them some of my self-evaluation process on nearly-complete papers. I might also add another meeting, even earlier in the process as students are collecting their potential sources. The biggest change, though, is timing. Last year I cancelled lab on the day the draft was due and held meetings then. This year, I’ll move meetings to the week after the draft due date. I think meeting as a lab on the day the draft is due will allow me to get the students started on next steps more efficiently and having a gap between due date and feedback will allow me to do more skimming ahead and preparation for more effective one-on-one meetings.

Nothing I’ve written about here is ground-breaking or even particularly innovative. But, sometimes it’s difficult to break from the way we were taught or the way we’re used to doing things. I hope that by sharing my journey so far I might contribute to the conversation as we, as individuals and as a field, strive for that magic solution that will be sustainable for us but still provide our students with the best possible learning experience.

References:

Ambrose, S. A., Bridges, M. W., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M. C., & Norman, M. K. (2010). How learning works: 7 research-based principles for smart teaching. Jossey-Bass.

American Psychological Association [APA]. (2023). APA guidelines for the undergraduate Psychology major. Version 3.0. American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/about/policy/undergraduate-psychology-major.pdf

Bain (2004). What the Best College Teachers Do. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

Doyle, T. (2011). Learner-centered teaching: Putting the research on learning into practice. Sterling, VA: Stylus Pub.

Fully Me: How My Religion Inspired a Teaching Intervention (with Empirical Evidence)

Tue, 10 Sep 2024 00:46:13 GMT

V. N. Vimal Rao
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

“Thinking like a scientist involves more than just reacting with an open mind. It means being actively open-minded.” Adam Grant

Towards the end of my graduate schooling, I was at a department party and found myself chatting with a first-year student about their research interests. At one point I noticed a chain that they were wearing, and asked them about it. They reacted shyly, almost embarrassed that I had noticed. The chain included a religious symbol. I asked them about how their beliefs inform their research interests, and they seemed surprised at the question. They simply responded, “I’m not sure religion and science have much in common.”

As a child of immigrants, I grew up in the United States perceived as a ‘hyphenated’ American. As a child, I often saw two versions of myself – the ‘American’ version that most people saw, and a second almost secret version disclosed with family or at cultural events. As an adult, I’m too tired to pretend to be anything other than fully me in everything that I do.

It is in this spirit that I firmly disagree with my friend that religion and science do not have much in common. If you are both religious and scientific, then they have everything in common – they have you in common.

It is with this value that one of my projects draws inspiration from. I am Hindu. I enjoy reading and learning about the BhagavadGita and other Vedantic works. In the spirit of being fully me – an educational psychologist and a Hindu – I realized that I could borrow pedagogical insights from the BhagavadGita to help me teach my students Statistics.

It might seem odd at first to think that modern psychological and educational research can learn a thing or two from religion. But let’s think about it as psychologists:

Many religions have existed for centuries;
They typically include something of a benchmark set of attitudes, beliefs, and practices;
They have encoded into their systems various pedagogies to support the propagation of these attitudes, beliefs, and practices; and
These religious instructional systems have existed for far longer than psychological (or statistical) pedagogies.

Clearly, religion is doing something right in terms of their pedagogical strategies to be able to last centuries. We would be remiss to not at least consider religious pedagogies as potentially viable strategies for our educational objectives.

In the case of the BhagavadGita, religious instruction is presented as a dialogue between a student (Arjuna) and a teacher (Krishna). Krishna is hailed as jagadguru, meaning ‘teacher of the world,’ a title bestowed to those teachers whose teachings have worldly impact. While I do not teach the same content as Krishna, surely I can study a jagadguru’s pedagogical strategies.

The Structure of the BhagavadGita

The BhagavadGita is set within the great epic Mahabharata. Specifically, it occurs immediately prior to the outbreak of a war between two sides of a ruling family. In Chapter 1 of the BhagavadGita, Arjuna asks Krishna (who is serving as Arjuna’s charioteer) to take him in front of the opposing army. Arjuna then sees his grandfather, his teachers, and many friends and relatives lined up with the opposing army, and has a crisis of conscience. Arjuna finds himself confused, anxious, and hopeless. It is from this despondence that Arjuna bows to Krishna, pleading for Krishna’s help.

Chapter 1 of the BhagavadGita is thus titled “Arjuna Vishada Yoga,” or “Arjuna’s despondency.” Throughout this entire chapter, Krishna stays silent. It is only after Arjuna seeks Krishna’s help, at the start of Chapter 2, that Krishna begins his instruction.

The implication is clear, and is similar to the old English proverb that ‘You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink.’ Arjuna would not have been ready or willing to receive Krishna’s instruction prior to experiencing confusion and anxiety. Those feelings created the motivation necessary for Arjuna to steadfastly receive Krishna’s instruction, and earnestly imbibe it into his being. For Krishna’s teachings to have had any effect, Arjuna needed to be ready to do three things: devotedly listen, reflect and contemplate on the teachings, and assimilate the knowledge into his being. Krishna knew Arjuna was ready to do these things only after Arjuna asked for Krishna’s help.

My Class

I teach a very large (500-700 students per section) general education introductory level statistics course. My students are not STEM majors. Most of them take my class because they have to – 99% of 602 students (out of 1019) from the Spring 2024 semester indicated on a survey that they took the course because it was either a major requirement or they were fulfilling a general education requirement. If it weren’t for those requirements, I might not have a course to teach.

Consider these students’ motivation. Do they plan to devotedly listen to the content, reflect and contemplate on it, and assimilate statistical thinking into their lives? Do they perceive any need to actually learn statistics? With few exceptions, the answer is no^{^[1]}. Prior to Arjuna asking Krishna for help, Krisha stayed silent. My students do not walk into my class because they think they need my help. Following Krishna’s example implies that I too should stay silent.

Despite staying silent, Krishna still played an important role in setting the stage for Arjuna’s desire to learn. When Arjuna asked Krishna to drive closer to the opposing army, Krishna could have driven anywhere. However, Krishna chose to drive right in front of Arjuna’s grandfather. By doing so, Krishna created the setting from which Arjuna’s plight would manifest, thereby increasing Arjuna’s motivation to learn and providing the opportunity for instruction.

Like Krishna taking Arjuna right in front of his grandfather, I too decided that I could create an environment to set the stage for students to develop motivation to learn statistics. To achieve this, I would eschew discussing the syllabus until Day 2, and instead spend Day 1 on telling a series of stories that require statistical thinking to resolve, hoping that students might relate to one, be unable to solve it, and thus develop a desire to learn statistics.

On Day 1, I tell my students seven different stories, one for each of the content units in the course. Here, I will retell the last of the seven stories I tell my students. This is a true story.

My Day 1 Story

It was a warm August night in Chicago. My grandfather was in the hospital, Day 3 of the current hospitalization due to dizziness and dehydration. The hospital only allowed visitors until 8 p.m., and as I was about to leave, the night nurse came in with some medication for my grandfather.

The nurse had a pill for my grandfather’s hypertension – he had high blood pressure. I asked what my grandfather’s most recent blood pressure was. “110,” the nurse told me.

110!? That was not normal for my grandfather. My grandfather measured his blood pressure every morning. He would complete his shower, get dressed, come to the dining room table, comb his hair, pray, measure his blood pressure and pulse, take his medications, and then only begin eating his breakfast.

I had spent the last year with him, bearing witness to the BP cuff beeping, inflating, and slowly deflating before giving my grandfather the data for the day, which he recorded in a notebook. Standing in the hospital, talking to the night nurse, I could not remember a single day that my grandfather’s blood pressure was as low as 110.

I told the nurse that 110 was lower than my grandfather’s typical blood pressure. The nurse explained that they always give the medicine if a patient’s blood pressure is above 130, and won’t give it if the blood pressure is below 100, but when the patient’s blood pressure is between 100-130, it’s at the nurse’s discretion, but they typically give the medication anyway.

With a blood pressure of 110, did my grandfather really need the medication? I didn’t think so, but the nurse did. If I was wrong and he really did need the medicine, his blood pressure would skyrocket overnight, and he would crash. If, on the other hand, we gave him the medicine but he really didn’t need it, his blood pressure would plummet overnight, and he would crash.

How would you make a decision about whether to give the medication or not? Would you feel confident about the decision you were making? Would you simply relinquish decision making power and allow the nurse to do whatever they think, even though you know your family best?

I decided to tell the nurse not to give the medicine, and I felt confident my decision was correct. Despite no medical training, I felt confident because I approached the problem by thinking statistically, and statistically, the answer was clear.

You are in this class to learn how to think statistically. You are in this class to learn how to apply statistical thinking to the decisions you make in your life. You are in this class because statistics is the science of variability and decision making under uncertainty, and by thinking statistically, you will be better able to navigate the uncertainty you will undoubtedly face in your lives.

You are in this class so that I can teach you how to think just like me if you ever have to face a situation in a hospital room like I did with my grandfather, and do so calmly and confidently.

Students’ Reactions to the Story

When I tell this story to my students on Day 1, I do not tell them my solution. My goal is to get my students to imagine themselves in the scenario, and to think about what they would do. I simply tell them that I know statistics, and that statistics allowed me to calmly make a decision without anxiety, without helplessness, and without despondence. If they find the situation stressful or unnerving, then they need to learn statistics, and I will help them learn how to think statistically. On Day 2 (and again in my last lecture), as a summary of the entire course, I do tell them the solution^{^[2]} – this is similar to the structure of the BhagavadGita, in which Krishna summarizes the entire teaching in both Chapter 2 and the final chapter, Chapter 18.

To evaluate whether this intervention was successful at setting the stage for students’ learning, I conducted three surveys throughout the term – one immediately after the Day 1 lecture, one at the midpoint of the semester, and one immediately before my final lecture. With over 500 responses to each of the three timepoints, I am still in the process of fully analyzing the data. However, it appears that the intervention was indeed successful at motivating at least some students. This is evident from the following example responses to survey items:

“[The problems] made me want to get an understanding of stats.”

“It convinced me we need to use statistics for the answers.”

“[The problems] made me want to learn what statistics does.”

“I understood I needed to learn stats.”

Additionally, in the survey data collected prior to the last day of class, this story about my grandfather was by far the story that the students best remembered and saw as important. While there was another story that students said they could imagine themselves in at higher rates, (a story about making a causal inference on whether compression socks can improve your 5k time that I told in the context of my sister and I running together), the fact that students remembered the story about my grandfather’s blood pressure nearly three months after the first lecture and without reinforcement is, I believe, evidence of the story’s efficacy in imparting the necessity and value of learning statistics.

Sources of Pedagogical Inspiration

This is just one small example of how I strive to draw pedagogical inspiration from anywhere I can, even religion. I do not believe this strategy is unique to a single religion, nor any single source. Another example of pedagogical inspiration I have drawn from religion is from Vedic mahavakyas, i.e., great sayings. These great sayings such as aham brahmasmi meaning “I am brahman” serves a role no different than many other great sayings in all religions. Pedagogically, these short sayings are easy to remember but packed with meaning. They serve as a psychological anchor for content knowledge and further inquiry. What then are our fields’ great sayings? From this inspiration I began teaching my students to say: “Who’s not here?” every time they see a graph, in an attempt to foster a critical statistical literacy habit of mind to question information about the sample and sampling strategy, especially regarding its representativeness and appropriateness for generalization.

It might seem odd to seek pedagogical inspiration from religion, but it does not seem so odd to me to keep an open mind in terms of potential sources of pedagogical inspiration. Who knows from where revolutionary new ideas can come?

I believe the best way to support new development and innovation in the teaching of psychology is for each of us to be fully ourselves in all contexts and at all times. Draw on all of your funds of knowledge and apply them generously to your work. Who knows where that may lead? Perhaps, and with any luck, it will lead us forward.

^{^[1]} Only 7% of 602 students (out of 1019) from the Spring 2024 semester indicated that if Statistics was not a required course, they would take it because they believe it is important to learn how to think statistically. 22% indicated that they would take Statistics if it was not a required course because they believe it might help them get a job.

^{^[2]} Based on the past data, and if my grandfather was in a stable condition consistent with how he usually felt over the previous few months, I predicted that my grandfather’s blood pressure should be around 140 – this is a simple model based on the mean. Accounting for variability, I knew that even if he was in stable condition, his blood pressure wouldn’t be exactly 140 – it could be as low as 120 or as high as 160, the typical amount of variation in his blood pressure. Based on this knowledge, I estimated that the RMSE is about 10, and that a middle 95% prediction interval for his blood pressure should be roughly from 120 to 160. If my grandfather was feeling like he normally does, his blood pressure should have been 140. My grandfather’s actual blood pressure was 110. The prediction error was -30. The z-score for the prediction was -3. The prediction was well outside the middle 95% prediction interval for what I expected my grandfather's blood pressure to be. Either my grandfather was feeling completely normal and this measurement was an extraordinary coincidence, or, the hypothesis that my grandfather is feeling like he normally does is not a good hypothesis.

From Student to Teacher: Charting Success in Undergraduate Psychology Education

Fri, 16 Aug 2024 21:20:58 GMT

Melissa C. Rothstein
The University of Rhode Island

Matriculating into a Behavioral Science Psychology PhD program at 21 years old, I eagerly joined the Health and Alcohol Related Problems (HARP) lab to work under the guidance of Dr. Amy Stamates. Fast forward to my third year of the program, I am not just a student but the instructor of record for an advanced statistics and research methods course at the University of Rhode Island. My passion for research methods and statistics, coupled with my steadfast dedication to ongoing learning, empowers me to connect with students and foster a dynamic and engaging learning environment. Despite the occasional confusion that I still blend in with undergraduates (and, at times, get mistaken for one), I’ve honed the skill of blazer camouflage - an invisibility cloak for looking my age in academia.

I currently teach Applied Methods in Psychological Research (a 400-level course), where students undertake the challenge of crafting a psychological manuscript comparable to a published journal article. With a class size typically comprising around 15-20 students, this manageable number enables me to provide personalized attention and facilitate hands-on learning experiences tailored to students needs and interests. Throughout the semester, students engage in the collection, cleaning, and analysis of empirical data. The culmination of their efforts results in a written manuscript, which is showcased orally as a presentation at the end of the semester. The assignments provided below have been personally developed, drawn from my undergraduate experience at SUNY Purchase College, or obtained from past instructors at the University of Rhode Island.

The Data & The Data Cleaning

We utilize Qualtrics to administer a survey to undergraduate students, encompassing various questionnaires chosen by students, covering topics such as happiness and exercise. To enhance the students’ practical skills, I incorporate demonstrations on employing Qualtrics effectively for survey administration. This includes guidance on designing well-structured questionnaires and navigating various features within the Qualtrics platform. Students are explicitly informed that the data collected is solely for educational purposes, as it lacks approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) for broader dissemination. Following the initiation of data collection, students undertake cleaning the dataset generated by Qualtrics and coding the questionnaires to prepare for subsequent analyses addressing their research inquiries. Instruction covers data cleaning techniques (e.g., addressing normality, outliers, and missing data) and coding procedures (e.g., sum scores, reverse scoring). Post data cleaning and prior to conducting analyses for their research questions, students are introduced to and explore preliminary analyses, including missing data analysis and reliability analysis.

The QMRI

QMRI’s (Question, Method, Results, Implications) serves as a valuable tool for conducting literature reviews and crafting the introduction section of a manuscript. I first encountered QMRI during my undergraduate years at SUNY Purchase College, where it played a pivotal role in my understanding of scientific writing. Now, I incorporate this assignment into my own course. More details can be found here: https://www.purchase.edu/live/files/1244-the-literature-reviewpdf. Students are provided with a template to answer key questions based on the journal articles they read and cite in their introductions. QMRI’s aid in paraphrasing and summarizing, proving particularly helpful for students in the manuscript writing process. The template comprises the following components:

Q: What is the research question/aims? What is the hypothesis?

M: What is the method (participants, measures, procedures)? What are the independent and dependent variables?

R: What are the results of the experiment in lay terms?

I: What are the implications of the results? Why is this experiment important?

The IRB Protocol Form

In my experience, students often gain theoretical knowledge about Institutional Review Boards (IRB) and ethics but lack practical immersion in the process of obtaining approval for an empirical study on human subjects. Consequently, a lab assignment in my course requires students to complete an IRB protocol form for their proposed study (even though gaining approval is not required for students to be able to carry out their research in the course). Research suggests that writing protocols has the potential to function as an educational tool in various domains, such as clarifying and refining research questions, conducting literature reviews, enhancing writing clarity, and ensuring adherence to ethical principles in research (Balon et al., 2019). In this assignment, students work in small groups, typically four to five members, to collaboratively fill out a protocol form and submit it for “IRB approval.” I review the protocols and provide feedback (though my feedback is not as thorough as what the IRB would provide). This exercise encourages students to thoughtfully consider the intricacies of their cross-sectional study, providing valuable insights into the steps researchers take to achieve ethical data collection.

The Peer Review

Peer review is an integral part of the learning process in my course because it offers valuable feedback from both their peers and the instructor. This feedback includes constructive criticism, insights, and suggestions aimed at enhancing the quality of students’ work. In fact, research shows that students who were more critical of their peers’ writing tended to achieve higher grades on their own writing (Yalch et al., 2019). All students receive training on how to provide insightful and professional peer review feedback before this assignment. Upon selecting research topics and receiving instruction on providing peer reviews, students are grouped based on shared interests. In these groups, students review each other’s work in two rounds: (1) introduction and method sections and (2) results and discussion sections. Each group consists of three students, with each student reviewing the work of two peers. Written reviews consist of 1-2 pages, encompassing a summary of the research, impression of the paper, and identification of any major or minor issues. Students are also asked to post comments and use tracked changes in the document while reviewing to provide more direct feedback. Additionally, students evaluate their reviewers based on the timeliness, professionalism, and helpfulness of the feedback received. This evaluation is factored into students’ grades to account for the feedback provided and received.

The Scaffolding

Using scaffolding for a complex assignment such as writing a psychological manuscript has been beneficial for both students and myself. Scaffolding involves organizing assignments and course materials systematically to align with course learning objectives and ensuring clear communication of goals and processes to students. More information on this approach can be found here: http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/web/aca_facultywac/Workshops-AssignmentScaffolding-120412.pdf. At the beginning of the semester, students are tasked with formulating research questions and hypotheses based on survey topics. Subsequently, they develop an outline for their manuscripts before progressing to drafting the content. I divide the manuscript assignment into three parts: (1) a draft introduction and method sections, (2) a draft of the results and discussion sections, and (3) the final manuscript encompassing the title page, abstract, introduction, method, results, discussion, references, tables, and figures. Grading is reserved solely for the final manuscript. Feedback is provided on the drafts, concurrent with peer reviews, to guide students in scientific writing and enhance their skills. Training students on manuscript writing is timely and requires a lot of thoughtful effort. My feedback is usually centered around creating coherent writing, using scientific language, and accurately reporting statistical analyses. To further support students in their learning journey, I encourage an iterative process for manuscript development via scaffolding as described previously. After the initial drafts and feedback stages, students are given an opportunity for revisions before submitting the final manuscript.

Furthermore, the scaffolding approach extends to collaborative learning experiences, where students engage in discussions and workshops focused on key elements of manuscript writing. These collaborative sessions foster a supportive environment for peer learning. By integrating scaffolding and iterative practices, the aim is to empower students not only in producing high-quality manuscripts but also in fostering a comprehensive understanding of the research and writing processes inherent in psychological studies.

The Statistics: Guess That Test

Throughout the semester, students are introduced to a range of statistical tests applicable to addressing their research questions. Since students have already acquired the mathematical foundations for these tests prior to the class in other research methods and statistics courses, the emphasis in this course shifts towards fostering a conceptual understanding. Before taking this course, students would have taken a Quantitative Methods in Psychology course, a Research Methods and Design in the Behavioral Sciences course, and related laboratory classes. The primary focus is on ensuring that students can confidently determine the appropriate statistical test for different research scenarios, emphasizing practical applications and decision-making in test selection. To enhance conceptual understanding, I employ interactive methods such as real-world examples and class discussions to allow students to apply their knowledge to practical situations. This reinforces their ability to discern the most suitable statistical test for a given research context. Here are a couple of example questions below:

A psychologist is interested in assessing whether there is a significant difference in anxiety levels before and after a therapy intervention within the same group of participants. What statistical test should the psychologist use and why?

Solution: Paired-samples t-test, because it enables comparisons between related measurements (pre- and post-intervention anxiety levels) within the same group of participants, facilitating the assessment of if the therapy intervention led to a significant change.

You are investigating the relationship between stress levels (measured on a Likert scale) on satisfaction with life (measured on a Likert scale). What kind of statistical test would you run?

Solution: Linear regression, because this analysis is suitable for predictive modeling (predicting the value of the dependent variable based on the independent variable) and analyzing relationships between continuous variables. However, given our utilization of cross-sectional data, students commonly employ terms like 'relationship' or 'association' to characterize such connections, rather than using language indicative of prediction or causation.

The Last Class: All About Graduate School

The majority of students enrolled in this class are actively in the process of applying to or preparing their applications for graduate school. As part of the curriculum, I dedicate the last class to discussing master’s and PhD programs in psychology to raise awareness and provide insight into the various opportunities available within the field of psychology graduate programs. I delve into key aspects of the application process, including important considerations when choosing between master’s and PhD programs, crafting a compelling personal statement, and securing strong letters of recommendation. The goal is not only to spread awareness but to provide students with the knowledge and resources needed for a successful transition to graduate studies in psychology.

In my role as an instructor, I strive to create an inclusive and collaborative learning environment where students feel inspired and empowered to actively engage in the field of psychology. Recognizing the diverse backgrounds and perspectives within the classroom, I encourage open discussions and harness the wealth of collective experiences. In addition to teaching Applied Methods in Psychological Research, I actively mentor students from my class and lab in their individual research endeavors. This mentorship extends beyond the classroom, providing students with personalized support and fostering a sense of community within the psychology department. As I navigate the dual roles of student and instructor, I remain committed to fostering a learning environment where curiosity thrives, critical thinking is encouraged, and each student feels empowered to explore the domains of psychological research.

References

Balon, R., Guerrero, A.P.S., Coverdale, J.H., Brenner, A.M., Louie, A.K., Roberts L.W. … (2019). Institutional review board approval as an educational tool. Academic Psychiatry, 43, 285-289. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40596-019-01027-9

Yalch, M. M., Vitale, E. M., & Kevin Ford, J. (2019). Benefits of peer review on students’ writing. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 18(3), 317-325. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475725719835070

PLUMS: Psychological Literacy for Undergraduate Methods and Statistics

Fri, 02 Aug 2024 20:23:07 GMT

Alexis Grosofsky, Beloit College
Jordan R. Wagge, Avila University
Jared G. Branch, University of Utah

Empirical research articles are an ideal pedagogical medium for helping teach core methodological and statistical concepts to psychology students. Rather than relying on fabricated descriptions of tools like surveys, experiments, and statistical tests, instructors can use full (but short!) research reports to ground these topics in real-world applications. This essay describes an open education resource (OER) we created called “Psychological Literacy for Undergraduate Methods and Statistics” (PLUMS) -- a collection of brief empirical articles to teach methodology and statistics to psychology undergraduates. The articles are accompanied by targeted factual and discussion questions about the research and include information about the design(s), analysis(ses), and any graphical/tabular displays. The methodological and statistical information is cross-referenced by “tags” (e.g., figures and graphs like bar graphs, statistical analyses like regression analysis, methodologies like convenience sampling, and subfields like social psychology), allowing instructors to select empirical articles to coincide with the topic(s) being covered.

Research methods and statistics are the heart of psychology. Regardless of what subfield of psychology you select, each of them involves research and statistics. After all, our discipline is an empirical science. Norcross and colleagues (2016) collected data using their Undergraduate Study in Psychology (USP) questionnaire and found that (as of 2014) almost all baccalaureate programs required courses in research methods (98%) and statistics (96%). Thus, it is very important that we do a good job teaching students about these topics. This is a difficult task given that many undergraduates find these courses daunting and often try to put them off as long as possible. Students often do not think that research methods and statistics are real psychology. Instead, “real psychology,” to many undergraduates, is learned through content courses such as social, clinical, cognitive, or developmental.

Despite what students may think, the American Psychological Association (APA) definitely believes that research methods and statistics are important. In their “Guidelines for the Undergraduate Psychology Major, Version 3.0” research methods and statistics are covered in two of their five goals:

Goal 2 “Scientific Inquiry and Critical Thinking” has more attention to statistical reasoning than in previous versions;

and

Goal 4 “Communication, Psychological Literacy, and Technology Skills” describes communicating effectively and demonstrating psychological literacy.

Both of these goals are ones that our Psychological Literacy for Undergraduate Methods and Statistics (PLUMS) project addresses.

The fact that research methods and statistics are so fundamental to our discipline, coupled with their recognition by the APA, underscores the need to enhance the teaching of research methods and statistics. Students should come away from these classes realizing how important research methods and statistics are to the empirical science of psychology. They should also come away from these courses being (and feeling) competent in their understanding of these vital topics.

Our idea of having students read real-life examples of research methods and statistics in empirical articles is supported by work done by Lewandowski and colleagues (2017). They describe how they have students read an empirical article covering the design students are learning about before introducing that design to the students. The idea is that students will learn the material better if their interest is captured first as demonstrated by Sizemore and Lewandowski (2011) who found that lessons about confounds were more successful in capturing students’ interest when they were framed around clinical depression rather than memory.

A book very similar to PLUMS was published by Milinki (2000, 2006). This text introduced articles by methodological technique (e.g., survey research, quasi-experimental research). Once a technique has been selected, the instructor then selects from the 2-5 articles within that technique. Both the second and third authors have used articles from Milinki’s book when teaching Research Methods / Statistics. They observed that using actual empirical reports resulted in their students showing more engagement than when they did not use such articles. The text does have some limitations. First, this text has not been updated since the second edition was published in 2006. Additionally, the organization requires instructors to select only by methodological technique (rather than by statistical technique or other relevant tags).

We sought to not only update Milinki’s (2000, 2006) work but also to expand upon it. Our project involved the following: first, we selected recent articles for 15 subfields in psychology (see Table 1).

Table 1

Subfields included in PLUMS

_____________________________________________________________________

Cognitive

Cross-Cultural

Development

Disorders

Drugs

Emotion & Motivation

Learning

Marketing

Memory

Neuroscience

Personality

Sensation & Perception

Sleep

Social

Stress & Health

______________________________________________________________________

Each article includes the reference making it easy to find the original article. Additionally, we wrote targeted factual and discussion questions about the research for each article. The factual questions are accompanied by the correct answer as well as the page number where the answer is found and can serve as reading quizzes. For example, “How did the researchers collect data about age preferences?” [they used an Implicit Association Test (IAT), p. 957]. The discussion questions then go beyond simple factual questions and require students to think critically about the reading. For example, “Can you think of another way to conduct this type of research that does not involve using the IAT?” These can be used for classroom or LMS-based discussions. We also include information about the design(s), analyses, and graphical/tabular displays to allow for cross-referencing of information, allowing instructors multiple ways to select empirical articles to coincide with whatever topic or technique is being introduced to their class.

We envision instructors being able to not only complement current class topics but also to have additional options such as:

Assigning some of the articles as extra credit activities (e.g., having students answer the factual and/or discussion questions posed).
Using the articles to serve as jumping-off points for students to create a research proposal as a capstone project in a research methods and/or statistics course.
Enriching content courses with topical empirical articles related to the course’s subfield.

The first author hand-selected 8 - 12 articles within each of 15 subfields of psychology, based on presumed undergraduate student readability and recency (publication year). We had undergraduate psychology students read and rate all of the selected articles. The students provided ease-of-reading ratings (on a 5-point Likert scale: 1 = easiest, 5 = hardest; M = 2.0, SD = .48) as well as interest ratings (again on a 5-point Likert scale: 1 = no interest, 5 = most interest, M = 4.5, SD = .71). We were successful in finding 5 articles for each included subfield that were rated as both relatively easy to read as well as interesting. In cases of conflict between the ratings, we prioritized selecting articles that were rated as easier to read rather than more interesting.

We created a system for instructors or students to submit articles (and the corresponding metadata) so that the materials are regularly updated and enriched. Contributions will be reviewed by members of the project making it a peer-reviewed process. Accepted submissions would be acknowledged as a contribution to the project that could be listed on an instructor's or student’s CV.

Empirical article libraries, such as the one we built, explicitly help improve student competence with methodology and statistics by using real, published data that they may encounter as fledgling producers or consumers of research. Conducting research comparing having students read articles from our project (specifically selected to be brief, readable, and interesting) vs. using a traditional textbook would be relatively easy to do. In fact, several faculty members could collaborate on such research. We hope that including some of these articles will also make the topics of research methods and statistics classes (which can be dry) more enjoyable.

We believe that incorporating empirical research will help to counter the perception that methods and statistics are boring (and isolated) subjects rather than the heart of the science of psychology. As instructors, we should be determined to have our students become better consumers of research/statistics and be more aware of what different research designs can (and cannot) tell us. This is especially important given that about 75% of students do not go on to graduate school (Lewandowski et al., 2017), and therefore must learn these skills as undergraduates. For instance, some of these discussion questions speak to applied issues (e.g., “How might we try to decrease bias against older individuals?”). Being psychologically literate will help all of our students become better citizens and better able to know what questions to ask when confronted with data.

Our project is available at https://sites.google.com/beloit.edu/plums/home. We hope you find it useful.

References

Norcross, J.C., Hailstorks, R., Aiken, L.S., Pfund, R.A., Stamm, K.E., & Christidis, P. (2016). Undergraduate Study in Psychology: Curriculum and Assessment. American Psychologist, 71(2), 89-101. doi: 10.137/a0040095

Lewandowski, G.W., Ciarocco, N.J., & Strohmetz, D.B. (2017). Chapter 23: Research Methods 2.0: A New Approach for Today’s Students. In R. Obeid, A. Schartz, C. Shane-Simpson, & P.J. Brooks (Eds.) How We Teach Now: The GSTA Guide to Student-Centered Teaching. Retrieved from the Society for Teaching of Psychology web site: https://teachpsych.org/ebooks/howweteachnow

Milinki, A. (2000, 2006). A Cross Section of Psychological Research: Journal Articles for Discussion and Evaluation. Pyrczak Publishing.

Sizemore, O. J., & Lewandowski, G. W. (2011). Lesson learned: Using clinical examples for teaching research methods. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 10(1), 25-31. https://doi.org/10.2304/plat.2011.10.1.25

The Power of New Learners Teaching Newer Learners in an Introductory Statistics Classroom

Tue, 16 Jul 2024 21:31:33 GMT

Lisa Dierker
Wesleyan University

My Story

I was still in my 20s when I arrived at Wesleyan University, fresh off a 3-year post-doctoral fellowship at the Yale School of Medicine. When asked to teach a research methods course, I had what felt like a brilliant idea driving home from the grocery store one day. I would not use a textbook and I would not deliver lectures. My own classroom training had been ineffective and uninspiring. As I tell my students, I learned 20 different kinds of post hoc tests but didn’t understand when or why to actually use one. So, instead of drowning my own students in information the way I had been drowned, I decided to get them involved with large, real-world data sets and support them in conducting original research. I would teach them what they needed to know when they needed to know it and not before. Their own questions would drive the learning and I would help them to experience the research process from start to finish. Passion-Driven Statistics was born!

Ten years later, it would become a multidisciplinary introductory statistics course at Wesleyan and a National Science Foundation funded model serving thousands of students across disciplines and educational environments in the United States and Internationally (e.g., Canada, Ghana, Nigeria, Philippines, Peru, United Kingdom, and still reaching). Passion-Driven Statistics is now a widely used project-based curriculum that has been implemented as a statistics course, a research methods course, a data science course, a capstone experience, and a summer research boot camp. Liberal arts colleges, large state universities, regional colleges and universities, medical schools, community colleges, and high schools have all successfully implemented the model.

The curriculum has been found to attract higher rates of under-represented minority (URM) students compared to a traditional statistics course and students enrolled in Passion-Driven Statistics are more likely to report increased confidence in working with data and increased interest in pursuing advanced statistics coursework (Dierker et al., 2018). This project-based approach also promotes further training in statistics. Using causal inference techniques to achieve matched comparisons across three different statistics courses, students originally enrolled in Passion-Driven Statistics were significantly more likely to take at least one additional undergraduate course focused on statistical concepts, applied data analysis, and/or the use of statistical software compared to students taking either an activity-based psychology statistics course or a math statistics course (Nazzaro, et al., 2020). In more recent research Passion-Driven Statistics has been found to be associated post-graduation with a higher likelihood of holding a job in which a primary responsibility includes working with data, greater confidence in working with data, and a higher likelihood of earning more than $100K annually (Dierker et al., in press).

A New Role

I always thought that I understood the ingredients that make Passion-Driven Statistics so empowering, and if asked, I would have told you about the opportunity to ask your own research questions, or I would have pointed to its just-in-time and need-to-know approach to content knowledge, or even its focus on technical skills in the service of disciplinary content and critical thinking. This year, I stepped back in to teach the course after several years away from it. Seeing it with fresh eyes more than 20 years after that first spark of inspiration made me realize that so much of its power comes from the simple act of new learners teaching newer learners.

I used to be the “new learner,” understanding exactly what it felt like to encounter and struggle with the abstract concepts, disciplinary jargon, mathematical complexity, and the arcane programming syntax involved in authentic research. Two decades later, I find that my role in the course has changed. I am no longer a new learner, and as much as I try to recreate that space and those feelings in myself, the “curse of knowledge” and my hard-won expertise hold me back. Now, I am recognizing an entirely new role in providing support to those former Passion-Driven Statistics students who have generously stepped in as peer mentors, warmly guiding our newest generation of students in the same empowering way that I was able to all those years ago. They are now the new learners teaching our newer learners from a place of empathy, passion, patience, high expectations, and mutual support. Every day in class, I see them using their new learners’ superpowers to inspire others, to explain concepts by getting to the simpler, more digestible parts faster, and to understand students’ perspectives in a deeply genuine way. I have loved watching them hone their skills in listening, adapt to the needs of the individual students and nurture them in ways that meaningfully impacted their own educational trajectory when they played the role of the newer learner.

Working this semester with some of the current peer mentors, Joyce Sun, Erin Byrne, and Luis Perez, has reminded me that Passion-Driven Statistics is as much a culture as it is a course. It is a space where no one needs to know everything, where we can all bring our best stuff, and where moral support and compassionate engagement allow our students to become the heroes of their own learning. Together, we take students out of their comfort zone and then love them through the fallout by creating an inviting classroom and an experience that gives students a safe and supportive space to get things wrong before they get them right.

While my role as expert in this space may continue to be necessary and even valuable on rare occasions, it is also wholly insufficient. It is only together with new learners, our newer learners, and expert voices that we hold the necessary and sufficient ingredients to change lives in the data analytics space. I know, it sounds rather dramatic, but it is!

And if that were not enough, I am also marveling at the chorus that I have continued to hear from peer mentors across the years, that they “learn more as a peer mentor” than they did when taking the Passion-Driven Statistics course for the first time. Though secondary and post-secondary education continues to resist the power of learning through teaching, it is the most untapped, cost positive tool that we currently have as educators. I believe that it is stronger even than the current promises of AI. Peer mentors may serve as volunteers, be paid through student work programs or training grants, or receive course credit as teaching assistants or through course designations (e.g., statistics education practicum). It does not have to be a promise for the future. We have everything that we need right now.

The Next Step

You might be interested to learn that my time away from teaching Passion-Driven Statistics has been spent designing a new project-based curriculum aimed at reimagining General Education. The goal of this new initiative is to expose students to a wide range of digital skills as they learn traditional disciplinary content. Within our digital “Introduction to Psychology” course, students explore concepts and content in the field of psychology through video storytelling, programming, data visualization, web development, design and more. This novel curriculum is aimed at solidifying new content knowledge, exposing students to modern digital tools, and providing them with the opportunity to create new learning artifacts.

And with this, I have found myself a new learner again, not just conquering new content outside of my research subdiscipline, but learning new tools, new skills, new design principles and being useful again the way only a new learner can be. All this newness is of course accompanied by uncertainty, vulnerability, and the distinct possibility of utter failure. It is hard and that is what I love about it. I find myself feeling inspired again and eager to bound out of bed in the morning to face new challenges and to find the transformative experience that I first found in the Passion-Driven Statistics classroom all those years ago.

I am always eager to network with passionate instructors excited about things we have not even imagined yet. Please feel free to reach out at ldierker@wesleyan.edu.

Resources for Passion-Driven Statistics are available at https://passiondrivenstatistics.com/. Some that you might find particularly useful include a free e-book and translation code aimed at supporting the use of diverse statistical software. Resources for Digital Intro are available at https://digitalintro.wescreates.wesleyan.edu/. I encourage you to take advantage of our introductory psychology lessons and project videos on our Youtube Channel. I am also happy to share a new project sharing platform, OpenLab, where students can get inspired, post learning artifacts, and share their work and learning by creating a free digital portfolio. Follow us on Instagram or check us out on LinkedIn to learn more!

How can we break down and build up students' active learning experience in a behavioral statistics course?

Mon, 15 Apr 2024 22:42:58 GMT

Rachel T. Walker
University of the Incarnate Word
Click here for a link to the article with figures

When I was an undergraduate student in biology, I decided to take a statistics course in psychology. I didn’t realize at that time that I would later be teaching this course in graduate school, and I couldn’t imagine that statistics would be one of my favorite courses to teach. Statistics can be a challenging subject for many students, but effective teaching can make a significant difference in how it's perceived (Pan & Tang, 2004). Over the years I have taught this course using a variety of teaching strategies based on the department layout of the course. As I progressed in teaching this course, I wanted the course to be flexible and responsive to students’ needs and create an active and effective learning experience for teaching behavioral statistics.

Over the years, I have continued to ask questions related to effective teaching strategies. What if I embedded videos or journal articles related to the real-world application of statistics? How could formative assessments such as quizzes, discussions, and polls during the course gauge students’ understanding? How can I use hands-on applications to illustrate the concepts of the material? Can I combine traditional lectures with interactive elements? Could I use a technology integration like SPSS (a software package used for the analysis of statistical data) to provide a hands-on project? How can I use scaffolded learning to break down complex statistical concepts? I will share some of the ways I have addressed these questions.

What if I embedded videos and research related to the real-world application of statistics?

I embed videos and research materials using a mixture of resources. Here are several examples of how I use short videos within the lecture. I show the videos during class, but students can also access them outside of class to confirm their understanding of the material.

I incorporate various Crash Course Statistics videos into the semester, offering detailed examples that illustrate the practical applications of specific statistical concepts in our daily lives. Before the start of the semester, I reach out to students and shared a crash course statistics video that provides the purpose of statistics; for example, how meteorologists use statistical methods to analyze historical weather data, identify patterns, and make predictions about future weather conditions, and how companies use statistics to aid in analyzing consumer behavior, preferences, and trends. I incorporate additionalCrash Course Statistics videos to provider a preview of specific statistical concepts, such as central tendency, before diving into the lecture content. For instance, before the central tendency lecture, I share a video that provides an overview of how these statistics can determine the center of both normal and skewed distributions.

Crash Course Statistics Preview

https://youtu.be/zouPoc49xbk?si=bBGlQy3SviHhirAH

Mean, Median, and Mode: Measures of Central Tendency: Crash Course Statistics #3

https://youtu.be/kn83BA7cRNM?si=arSRn7zQJddDpOhj

In one of the classes, I cover the four levels of measurement along with fundamental definitions and a few examples. Following that, I present a brief video offering visual insights into the distinctions among the measurement scales.

Data Science & Statistics: Levels of measurement

https://youtu.be/eghn__C7JLQ?si=mOoqzh-k-adUtNz6

Another instance related to the use of a short video involves the application of bar graphs. Initially, I instruct students on the X- and Y-axes to depict data. Students acquire the skills to construct histograms and bar charts and interpret their representations. Once they grasp the fundamentals of bar graphs, I introduce a video that provides real-world instances of commonly shared misleading graphs.

How to spot a misleading graph

https://youtu.be/E91bGT9BjYk?si=4Rn8keUpH5yGpVC2

In addition to videos, I also distribute sections of a journal article, allowing students the chance to practice reading and interpreting the results section. I first provide students with the abstract of the article to offer a brief overview of the article, highlighting the main objectives, methods, results, and conclusions of the work. I share the results section to provide an overview of the structure of the results on the statistic that relates to the lecture. This is usually the first time that students are introduced to reading the results of a scientific article related to psychology. This process assists students in understanding the format of how statistics are reported in a journal article and the use of APA format. In other psychology courses, students will be required to summarize scientific articles and understand the methods and analyses.

How could formative assessments such as quizzes, discussions, and polls during the course gauge student understanding?

Quick quizzes are embedded throughout the lecture to test student understanding after each small section of content. These questions, taken from Cengage’s instructor materials related to the textbook (Essentials of Statistics for the Behavioral Sciences 10th ed., Gravetter et al.) could be multiple choice, true or false, or applied research questions. This process allows students to confirm they understand the course material before we continue to move forward in the chapter.

I incorporate discussion group assignments in the course to encourage active engagement amount students. Throughout the semester, I offer six discussion board opportunities, where students submit their discussion topics and respond to posts from their peers.

Here are several examples of sources that could be used for creating discussion group assignments:

1) A majority of Americans have heard of ChatGPT, but few have tried it themselves. Integrate the information from the tables into your overall understanding of the material.

https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/05/24/a-majority-of-americans-have-heard-of-chatgpt-but-few-have-tried-it-themselves/

2) How to defend yourself against misleading statistics in the news.

Integrate the information in the video in your overall understanding of misleading statistics.

https://youtu.be/mJ63-bQc9Xg?si=CqIubt8xxzHLFtx8

3) Correlating Barriers to Medication Adherence With Trait Anxiety, Social Stigma, and Peer Support in College Students With Chronic Illness

Indicate how the information from the tables and result section into your overall understanding of the material.

https://www.psichi.org/page/273JNFall2022#.Y8R15hXMK3A

Directions for Response: Make sure your responses are well thought out and each provides at least 3 sentences for each section. Respond to each of the following questions: Describe the topic provided by this resource. What did you find interesting? How would this relate to the real world? What did you find challenging to understand?

Directions for Replies to colleagues should be at least 3 sentences as well. Reply to another student's post: Replies can include your thoughts about the student's perception of the source or your additional thoughts on the topic related to the source.

Moreover, I employ Poll Everywhere in diverse manners within a lecture. For example, at the beginning of a lecture on descriptive statistics, students are asked “What type of social media is used the most in the U.S.?” Once students submit their thoughts, I show students the data related to this question that did not support most of their responses for adults. However, I then provide data on teens' use of social media that is closer to their responses. After the discussion, I lecture on descriptive statistics.

Here are the links I shared from PEW and discussed the changes over time.

https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2021/04/07/social-media-use-in-2021/

https://www.pewresearch.org/journalism/fact-sheet/social-media-and-news-fact-sheet/

https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2022/08/10/teens-social-media-and-technology-2022/

https://www.pewresearch.org/internet/2023/12/11/teens-social-media-and-technology-2023/

I also use Poll Everywhere towards the end if a lecture to ensure that students understand the content. For example, rate your level of understanding of how to calculate an independent t-test. If students respond that they are struggling with this issue it provides useful feedback and students can ask specific questions regarding their issue.

How can I use hands-on applications to the concepts of the material?

Here is an example of how I utilize hands-on applications in class. First, I teach students how to read and understand a research scenario, determining information such as the alternative hypothesis, the alpha level, and the variables provided.

During a lecture, I present how to use that information in the 4-step process for hypothesis testing.

1. State null and alternative hypotheses.

2. Identify the critical region based on alpha level, one or two-tailed hypothesis, and degrees of freedom.

3. Compute the statistics by showing all calculations.

4. Draw out the distribution with the critical and test statistic. Conclude and report the findings in APA format.

After students took notes on this process, I provide them with another research scenario to solve during class. While students are working through the 4-step process, I assist them along the way. For example, if a student wants to know if they are on the correct path, they might ask if their critical region is correct. If the student is incorrect, instead of saying no, I ask them a question.. I asked them to show me how they came to that conclusion. This process allows the student to find the correct answer in most cases. Students can then proceed to complete homework questions using the hands-on applications introduced in class. In many real-world scenarios, the use of statistical software and tools has become standard due to their efficiency, accuracy, and ability to handle large datasets. This process of manual calculations can be more effective in conveying the step-by-step process, contributing to better conceptual communication. However, in some work situations small datasets and manual calculations can be quicker than setting up and using statistical software.

Can I combine traditional lectures with interactive elements? Could I use a technology integration like SPSS to provide a hands-on project?

How can I alter my previous teaching of behavioral statistics? I did something I thought I would never do. I had to remove some of the content to provide students with the opportunity to learn how to analyze, interpret, and summarize their results by integrating technology. I use SPSS, but other types of software can be used. such as Microsoft Excel. I've excluded lectures covering paired-t tests, two-way ANOVA, and Regression. While these statistics are referenced in a lecture, students won't receive in-depth information about these subjects. Our department offers an elective course in Advanced Statistics, providing students with the opportunity to explore and delve into more intricate statistical concepts. In addition, this change allowed me to use those class times to embed a lab component into the lectures.

I provide students with a preexisting dataset that I collected earlier, which they use in the lab component of the class. This data is employed for descriptive statistics, independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, and correlations. I familiarize students with the broader subject of the research they will be examining, which involves personality and social networking. Subsequently, I clarify the variables and their measurements, such as gregariousness and the frequency of social media usage. In the lab, I guide them through the SPSS layout to enhance their understanding of the software's functionality and then provide lab for each of the four types of statistics that will be analyzed in SPSS. For example, after I teach the independent t-test, I will have a lab focused on how to calculate the independent t-test in SPSS, how to interpret the outcome, and how to write up the findings in the APA format. I provide handouts for the lab that include an introduction, the steps to complete in SPSS, an example of the output, and a paragraph of the findings of the example. As I explain this process, students follow along by mimicking my steps. Subsequently, I task students with forming hypotheses derived from the measured variables. In the assignment, students are required to generate two hypotheses. I review each hypothesis before examining the analysis of the first one in the lab. Afterward, I provide feedback on the results of each student's first hypothesis before the conclusion of the lab session. Throughout the lab, I employ the Socratic method to facilitate learning and guide students in completing the assignment related to the second hypothesis outside of class.

How can I use scaffolded learning to break down complex statistical concepts?

Teaching a course using scaffolding involves providing structured support to students as they learn new concepts, gradually removing this support as they gain mastery. Here's my step-by-step guide on how I implement scaffolding in a course:

1) Assess prior knowledge: I use poll everywhere at the beginning of a lecture.

2) Break down the information: I define terms, provide steps for analysis, and utilize quizzes.

3) Provide guidance: I allow students individual practice in and out of the classroom.

4) Encourage collaboration: I embed collaboration with the instructor and other students.

5) Continuous assessment: I assess in-class calculations, poll everywhere, and quizzes.

6) Gradual release of responsibility: I utilize the Socratic method in the lecture and lab.

7) Applications to real-world tasks: I offer discussions on real-world situations and provide students with the opportunity to analyze, interpret, and report on existing data.

8) Flexibility: I utilize an adaptive based on various levels of support needed.

It is essential to teach statistics according to students' needs and foster an active and effective learning experience for various reasons. This includes the utilization of active learning methods, such as hands-on activities and engaging discussions, to keep students motivated and involved in the learning process. Additionally, enhancing understanding by presenting practical situations, connecting statistical concepts to real-world scenarios, and equipping students with proactive skills and problem-solving abilities are key objectives in this approach.

In summary, teaching statistics in a way that addresses students' needs and incorporates active learning methodologies enhances the overall learning experience, making the subject more accessible, engaging, and applicable to students' academic and professional pursuits.

I consistently adapt and modify the course design in response to student feedback and through collaboration with fellow instructors. This ongoing process makes teaching this course a continuous and rewarding experience. This story never ends… which makes this course still one of my favorite courses.

Reference

Pan, W., & Tang, M. (2005). Students' perceptions on factors of statistics anxiety and instructional strategies. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 32(3), 205.

Creating New Learning Settings: Collaborative Student Research Groups

Wed, 20 Mar 2024 18:15:47 GMT

Mona Corinna Griesberg
FernUniversität in Hagen, Germany

During my psychology bachelor’s program in Germany, classes were mostly teacher-centered lectures that allowed little student engagement. Fortunately, psychology classes at a small liberal arts college in Michigan, USA, introduced me to less hierarchical but feminist teaching formats. In the beginning of her feminist psychology course, Dr. Karyn Boatwright shared her feminist teaching philosophy aiming to create collaborative learning communities (Enns et al., 2005; Sinacore & Boatwright, 2005). She gave me the opportunity to facilitate a social action project focused on sexism research. In the following, I describe the project and reflect on its benefits and challenges. By sharing my experience as a teaching assistant, I hope to encourage fellow educators to create more wholesome learning opportunities for students to gain research and feminist leadership experience.

Feminist Leadership & Project Goals

Dr. Karyn Boatwright teaches Feminist Psychology of Women every winter term. Within ten weeks, two classes of circa twenty students each meet three times a week to discuss feminist issues from a psychological perspective. An intergral part of the course is students’ participation in social action projects, making up thirty percent of their grading. In the beginning of the term, students received a list of possible social action projects and informed Dr. Boatwright about their preferences. For example, the projects were about creating a more inclusive environment at the campus gym, a theatre performance on reproductive rights or feminist peer-support groups for students. I offered a collaborative research group focusing on sexism research. Each social action group consisted of five to ten students and met outside of class to work on a social justice issue. The projects aimed to promote community engagement, political activism, and long-term social change. In the following, I describe the social action group that I facilitated as a teaching assistant: a collaborative research group focusing on ambivalent sexism. As the facilitator of the collaborative research group, I endeavored to follow my professor’s example and apply feminist leadership principles. That meant creating collaborative learning spaces that were - contrary to my former and many others experiences in higher education - based on relationship building and welcomed expressions of emotions, intuition, and vulnerability. I wanted to minimize hierarchies between the students and myself but allow us to build trust and connection. Furthermore, the goal was to empower the students, to foster awareness for the needs of marginalized communities and to increase an understanding for how feminist research can contribute to social justice and improved well-being.

Academia and research have long been less accessible for people with marginalized identities (DeBlaere, 2020). I hoped the project would help students to feel less intimidated by research, to connect research to personal experiences, and to build confidence knowing that they have much to contribute to academic spaces. However, the project was not directly aimed at encouraging students to stay in academia or build a career in research. Instead, the project offered opportunities for students to build their curiosity by finding and exploring topics about which they cared deeply and wanted to learn more. I wanted to open their minds to the different ways in which research can be conducted, so they have a broader view of what research and academia can look like, can contribute to change within the fields, and can make more informed decision career choices.

Project Activities

Since the project was carried out during the covid-19 pandemic, it was limited to synchronous and asynchronous online learning. Our weekly online meetings gave the project the necessary structure. In preparation for these meetings, students did their individual literature review on ambivalent research (Glick & Fiske, 2018). I recommended that they would invest up to two hours per week in their research. In an online drive, students could view recommended scientific research papers and other materials like podcast episodes. Moreover, I encouraged students to look for alternative materials to engage with the project topic in a way that would suit their interests. If they found interesting alternative materials, they added them to our online drive.

During our weekly meetings, we discussed their individual research of the past week. I invited students to pose questions and to share their newly gained knowledge. For example, if someone didn’t understand the statistics of a research paper they had read, we looked at it again. We also shared observations of our daily life that aligned with the research content we had learnt about. Towards the end of the term, we used out group meetings to plan our final online event. Even though students’ individual research was the basis for their learning, the regular meetings created a communal learning experience.

In addition to our weekly project meeting, I organized online meetings with international researchers who worked on topics related to ambivalent sexism. Students attended on a voluntary basis and asked questions about the research and academic life. It was also an opportunity to practice networking, an important skill for career development.

Furthermore, I met students one-on-one online, at least twice throughout the semester. The first time was a chance to get to know each other better and discuss expectations for the research project and their first impressions. Towards the end of the project, we met again to reflect on the overall learning experience, to exchange feedback and discuss their grading.

At the end of the term, our project group hosted a public, online event to which all students of Feminist Psychology and other interested community members were invited. At the event, the project members presented what they had learnt about ambivalent sexism and engaged the audience in a discussion. It was an opportunity to share their new knowledge, to practice presenting research in an appealing way and to get feedback from other community members about how the scientific concepts related to their personal experiences.

Grading

The grading was based on their attendance of the group meetings, their independent research and participation in the final online event about our project. In the beginning of the project, I explained to the students that they would keep track of their engagement themself. At the end of the term, I met with each student, we reflected on the group project and they told me how they graded their own engagement. Unless it was very different from my impression, the grade was set and contributed thirty percent to their final grading of the whole Feminist Psychology course.

Most students had been very engaged in our group project and graded themselves accordingly. There was a student whose engagement seemed low to me in the beginning of the project. After the first few weeks, we met one-on-one and discussed how she could improve her learning experience and contribute more to our group learning. If educators get the impression that a student isn’t engaged and capacities allow, I would advise educators to do the same time: get in touch with the student, try and find out how they feel about their current engagement and depending on their interest, reflect on how they may engage more.

Learning Through Group Facilitation

For me as a teaching assistant, the project was a fantastic opportunity to practice feminist group leadership, project development and social justice research. I engaged in networking and community building and learned about student supervision, skills that proved useful in graduate school and my further career. Besides, it was simply fun to get to know the students and to learn from them in challenging discussions. For example, we talked about how our families’ dynamics had contributed to us internalizing gender roles. We also reflected on the image of research and how it had influenced our own academic aspirations.

In parallel to the social action project, I was working on my bachelor’s thesis about ambivalent sexism and the engagement with my peers helped my motivation and creativity. Furthermore, the group facilitation and collaboration with Dr. Karyn Boatwright enhanced my passion for researching and teaching psychology and combining these with social justice work. The positive student feedback also encouraged her to continue working with me.

Towards More Wholesome Learning Experiences

The success of the ambivalent sexism research project led to another social action project that I facilitated in 2023.This time, seven students took part and the project centered upon lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and related (LGBTQ+) research. Because the pandemic restrictions had been loosened, the project was conducted on-campus creating new opportunities: In addition to independent research, weekly group meetings and one-on-one meetings, I invited students to engage in further learning activities. For example, some students and I attended external events together, a game night for community building at a local non-governmental organization and a presentation of recent LGBTQ+ research at a neighboring university. We also met for a crafting evening on campus where a queer artist joined us online to teach us crafting queer zines. A few of us met for an intimate self-care morning including meditation and talking circles which created special bonding moments between the students. These activities were all voluntary and there was no grading penalty if students did not join.

Lastly, I want to highlight a memorable project event: Through an LGBTQ+ organization, we got in touch with bi- and pansexual women from the local community and invited them to join one of the feminist psychology classes. Four women agreed to meet and share their experiences and perspectives with the class. We met in room on campus that allows comfortable seating in a circle next to a fireplace. Providing hot chocolate, tea and snacks contributed to the rather informal and comfortable setting. The students in our group project had prepared questions about the women’s identities, wishes, experiences of discrimination and coping strategies and facilitated the classes. The speakers shared many personal insights, for example, about religious communities and female, sexual empowerment. Their openness allowed for an empowering experience for all attendees. Many students explicitly mentioned the positive impact of the event in their course reflections.

Compared to the ambivalent sexism research project, the LGBTQ+ research project took a more holistic learning approach by including independent research, group meetings focusing on scientific research as well as artistic expression and self-care, one-on-one meetings, online meetings with international researchers, an in-class meeting with local community members and further voluntary events off-campus. These voluntary activities were offered to the students to explore their academic and personal interests, find inspiration, experience a sense of community, to gain confidence in scientific discussions and in their research skills, to build connections to international researchers and more. It was the students’ responsibility to decide how and how much they could and wanted to invest in the project and in the group. This freedom was essential to avoid emotional overload and to create positive experiences in research engagement.

Future Directions and Considerations

In other educational settings, similar projects may require different degrees of structure and flexibility. We implemented the group projects in Feminist Psychology of Women at a small liberal arts college in the Midwest. It’s a relatively small student body with small cohorts and classes. Less than ten students participated in each social action project. Other lecturers and teaching assistants may not have the resources to invest the time and effort into a few students. However, I would like to encourage lecturers in higher education to acknowledge the resources that their teaching assistants, advanced students and interns bring to the table. Sharing teaching and leadership responsibilities can not only ease the lecturer's work but also create new learning opportunities for the group facilitators. Each social action group in Feminist Psychology was facilitated by a teaching assistant. We had the responsibility of overseeing the progress of our project group. The lecturer Dr. Karyn Boatwright met with us, teaching assistants, weekly to talk about how the projects were going and if we needed any additional support.

With the support of Dr. Karyn Boatwright and with few bureaucratic barriers, I had much freedom in developing and facilitating the projects. This may be different at other higher education institutions where, for example, the curricula and grading guidelines may be stricter. Other challenges may be insurance and safety when attending external events with students or inviting external guests on-campus. Before the project, lecturers and teaching assistants should make sure they know about the risks and limits of working on their project outside of campus. They should be mindful that working on social justice issues might come with different risks for different students and they may need assistance in navigating those risks. For example, being associated with LGBTQ+ topics might be dangerous in communities that hold strong anti-LGBTQ+ attitudes. Therefore, the local and academic environment should be considered when selecting the research topic and activities.

The teaching assistants should consider students’ multifaceted identities and positions. Their former experiences and knowledge can differ as well as expectations and needs for the project. The group constellation will lead to a particular power dynamic within the group. Certain intersecting identities will be underrepresented or less visible throughout the project. Thus, teaching assistants should consider how they can make space for those perspectives in the group discourse. For example, they can recommend research materials that thematize underrepresented identities and experiences. Encouraging students to bring in their own interests and alternative materials can also help to diversify the learning content. Still, lecturers and teaching assistants should be aware that conflict mediation might be needed. Since students’ learning curves and their opinions on social justice issues differ, it is important to address early on that the group should work towards a comfortable learning environment for everyone. To achieve this, it can help to collectively set some ground rules in the beginning of the project.

I hope naming these possible challenges does not discourage educators from questioning if and how they can apply my suggestions to their work. Every educational setting has its challenges and limits. Therefore, each project and group will be different and require adaptation. Nonetheless, I see much potential in this approach of collaborative student research groups. To start small, educators might consider the following: do they have the capacities to create multidimensional learning experiences for their students? Would the students be interested in project work on social justice topics? Are there possibilities of local or virtual community engagement? Can they share learning responsibilities with teaching assistants and students? How can they make research less intimidating and academia more accessible for a variety of students? Overall, how can you create collaborative learning spaces? I believe that answering these questions, can move higher education towards create more enjoyable and wholesome learning experiences for the students and educators.

References

DeBlaere, C. (2020). Defining myself in: My early career journey. Women & Therapy, 43(1-2), 144-156. https://doi.org/10.1080/02703149.2019.1684672

Glick, P., & Fiske, S. T. (2018). The ambivalent sexism inventory: Differentiating hostile and benevolent sexism. Social Cognition (pp. 116-160). Routledge.

Enns, C. Z., Sinacore, A. L., Acevedo, V., Akçali, Ö., Ali, S. R., Ancis, J. R., Anctil, T. M., Boatwright, K. J., Boyer, M. C., Byars-Winston, A. M., Fassinger, R. E., Forrest, L. M., Hensler-McGinnis, N. F., Larson, H. A., Nepomuceno, C. A., & Tao, K. W. (2005). Integrating Multicultural and Feminist Pedagogies: Personal Perspectives on Positionality, Challenges, and Benefits. C. Z. Enns & A. L. Sinacore (Eds.), Teaching and social justice: Integrating multicultural and feminist theories in the classroom (pp. 177–196). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10929-011

Sinacore, A. L., & Boatwright, K. J. (2005). The Feminist Classroom: Feminist Strategies and Student Responses. C. Z. Enns & A. L. Sinacore (Eds.), Teaching and social justice: Integrating multicultural and feminist theories in the classroom (pp. 109–124). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/10929-007

Acknowledgements: I would like to thank Dr. Karyn Boatwright for her invaluable trust, support and supervision throughout the projects as well as her feedback on this essay. I would also like to thank the amazing students who participated in the projects and all researchers and community members who enabled the depth and variety of our learning.

Research Proposals: My Effort to Make Them an Early Curricular Experience

Tue, 06 Feb 2024 00:47:01 GMT

Brooke O. Breaux
University of Louisiana at Lafayette

My department’s Psychological Science course has two primary objectives: 1) for students to start building the underlying knowledge that they will need to become a producer of psychology, and 2) for students to become more familiar with psychology as a major and a discipline. Psychological Science—designed for second semester freshman who have taken only an introductory psychology course—was integrated into my department’s 2020-2021 curriculum. Our intention was for Psychological Science to be taught as a traditional in person course, but due to the precautions taken by my university in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic I taught this course first as a synchronous online course and then as a hyflex course with students deciding whether to attend class in person or online and then, finally, as a fully in person course. Setting aside the complexities of teaching the course in formats different than the one we had in mind when developing the course, Psychological Science itself is ambitious. At a minimum, students enrolled in this course are required to complete a pre-course and a post-course assessment, to take exams and/or quizzes, to construct an actionable plan for their professional development and career exploration, to earn a research ethics certification (i.e., Undergraduate Training on Human Subjects Research through the Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI), to serve as a participant in actual psychological research, and to write a brief APA Style research proposal. Faculty assigned to teach this course are required to cover topics ranging from psychology as a discipline—including degrees and careers in psychology—to psychology as a science—including research methods, research ethics, and APA Style writing. When teaching this course for the first time, I made the incorrect assumption that if my goal was to have my students write quality research proposals, all I needed to do as an instructor was to provide them with the relevant research design concepts and a clear assignment rubric. What I learned that first semester was that such an approach was insufficient for many of my students and that they needed significantly more scaffolding to produce what I would consider to be a quality product.

I have now taught this course six times and have dramatically changed the way in which I teach research methods. The approach I have developed is highly scaffolded, involving a sequence of three assignments. For each of the assignments, I have constructed explicit instructions, aligned the delivery of course topics with the assignment deadline, and eliminated unnecessary complexity; however, before diving into a more detailed discussion of my efforts to make the writing of an APA Style research proposal a much more integral part of the course, I thought it would be useful to discuss the development of our Psychological Science course, the integral role it plays in my department’s current curriculum, and our efforts to standardize certain elements of the course.

Curricular-Level Enhancements: How Did We Get Here?

When I was hired as a faculty member, undergraduate psychology majors did not take our Introduction to Psychology course. They took two courses designed for majors: one focused more on the basic science of psychology and the other focused more on the applied aspects of psychology. After several semesters of teaching the basic science half of this introductory course sequence, I advocated for a change in our curriculum. This change was supported by the faculty members teaching these introductory courses for majors, who agreed that our curriculum lacked a true research methods course, that we could do a better job of preparing students for our Psychological Statistics course, and that the order in which we introduced certain topics and assessed certain learning outcomes in our curriculum could be improved. To illustrate this last point, it is helpful to know that students enrolled in our basic science of psychology course for majors were typically freshman who were taking the course during their first semester in college. This is the same semester in which the majority of students take their first general education English writing course, which requires them to write papers in MLA Style. Then, during the same semester, our basic science of psychology course for majors introduced students to the discipline of psychology; taught them about some of the major themes, concepts, and findings related to basic science topics, such as the biological psychology and cognitive psychology; and required them to write an APA Style literature review. It is no wonder, then, that many students found it difficult to be successful in this course. I knew that our department could provide students with a better introductory learning experience and that such a change could also serve to strengthen our curriculum.

We went with a change that would require our majors to take a Psychological Science course but only after taking our Introduction to Psychology course. The decision to have all students take our Introduction to Psychology course was supported by documents such as “Strengthening the Common Core of the Introductory Psychology Course” in which the American Psychological Association (2014) explains that there is no evidence in the literature to suggest that having two introductory psychology courses—one for majors and one for nonmajors—is needed. The decision to create a new course for majors was supported by Stoloff et al. (2010), who suggest that departments that want a more robust Introductory Psychology course for their majors can modify other requirements and sequencing. For example, departments that want to provide more early experiences might be better served by creating another course, such as one that addresses research methods (Stoloff et al., 2010), career preparation (Atchley, Hooker, Kroska, & Gilmour, 2012; Brinthaupt, 2010; Thomas & McDaniel, 2004), preparation for the major (Atchley et al., 2012; Dillinger & Landrum, 2002), or writing in the major (Goddard, 2003)” (American Psychological Association [APA], 2014, p. 20). To this end, we determined that students would benefit from the creation of a required Psychological Science course designed to target these specific objectives.

Psychological Science is a critical course in our curriculum, providing students with a solid foundation in research methods and serving as a prerequisite for our required Psychology Statistics course. Because of its foundational nature in our curriculum and because it would inevitably be taught by a variety of faculty members, we determined that a minimum standardization of the course would be necessary to ensure similar outcomes across all students. Included in our standardization of this course is the requirement for all students to complete a brief APA Style research proposal, consisting of an APA Style title page, introduction with APA Style citations, method section, and APA Style reference entries; however, what we did not specify was a means by which faculty are to achieve this objective. There are two faculty members who regularly teach Psychology Science, but other faculty members are assigned to teach this course as needed. Everyone who teaches Psychological Science is considered a member of our standardization committee. The role of this committee is to address any issues a faculty member has with the standardization and resolve these issues by updating or changing the standardization.

Course-Level Enhancements: What Am I Doing?

Teaching psychological research methods to undergraduates who have only had an introductory psychology course is challenging, and requiring undergraduate students to complete research proposals within such a course can be overwhelming for everyone involved, especially when the class is not small (i.e., around 45 students), does not include a laboratory component, and takes place during a 15-week semester. In the context of research methods courses, project-based learning experiences, such as writing a research proposal, are generally encouraged; however, because the assignments described in the literature tend to focus on more advanced students (e.g., Chamberlain, 1986), I used trial-and-error to develop an approach that enables students to more effectively and efficiently produce quality research proposals. Interestingly, my intuitions ended up aligning with strategies that have been advocated by other instructors, such as reducing unnecessary complexity, especially as it relates to research design (e.g., Yoder, 1979), and offering students the opportunity to practice producing quality writing (e.g., Ishak & Salter, 2017).

My initial approach to teaching this course was to provide lectures on the relevant topics in the order that they appear in the textbook, expecting students to incorporate this information into their research proposal document. My students found this part of the process exceedingly difficult and this strategy resulted in research proposal that did not meet my expectations; therefore, I created a three-stage (i.e., Introduction Section, Method Section, and Appendices), step-by-step process for developing a research proposal. The instructions for each section are contained within step-by-step documents that are made available to students on our learning management system. To reduce unnecessary complexity I reordered the course topics so that the concepts read about in the textbook and discussed in class would be directly relevant to the part of the research proposal that students are currently working on, and students are explicitly told which step in the step-by-step documents the textbook readings and lecture materials are relevant to. I also created a grading form that aligns with the step-by-step document, which enables me to provide timely feedback at each stage.

Anyone interested in how I have aligned lecture topics, APA course objectives, and development of an introduction section, method section, and appendices can access this information in the form of a poster I presented at the APS-STP 2023 Teaching Institute (Breaux, 2023; https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/m2mfy7dot5vtdthrswk36/2-APS-2023-Teaching-Poster-BREAUX.pdf?rlkey=fe7e9wnhg9ucm99pu5kffacrw&dl=0). Actual resources that I used during the Spring 2023 semester, such as the step-by-step guidelines (e.g., “Introduction Section Instructions”) and grading forms (e.g., “Introduction Section Rubric”), can be found in the main folder I created for the APS-STP 2023 Teaching Institute (Breaux, 2023; https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0mc2al4pcshfa90/AABtl7wI32Q8UD8UIJgQ0PDha?dl=0). Readers are invited to use or modify the resources provided for educational purposes only.

I have also made the literature review portion of the introduction more manageable by requiring students to cite only four empirical research articles. This approach allows students to focus on basic skills, such as integrating information from different sources and using APA Style citations appropriately. It also helps students avoid both accidental plagiarism (often due to insufficient paraphrasing skills) and intentional plagiarism (often due to issues with time management). Another change that I made was to have the whole class focus on the same topic. I always try to select a topic that psychology undergraduates could relate to on a personal level, such as the extent to which college students believe psychological myths (e.g., Hughes et al., 2015) and the extent to which college students engage in self-care (e.g., Zahniser et al., 2017). I have found that topics related to the teaching of psychology and social psychology tend to be more accessible to students at this stage in their academic careers and that topics related to biological psychology and cognitive psychology are the most difficult. Pre-selecting a topic for the semester affords two primary benefits: Students can start reading the empirical literature sooner, and I can address issues specific to the topic during class time. My current approach to teaching Psychological Science shares similarities with Passion Driven Statistics (https://passiondrivenstatistics.wescreates.wesleyan.edu/), which is a project-based approach to teaching statistics that focuses on providing students with only as much information as they need to successfully complete the current tasks they have been assigned.

Conclusion

These improvements have made teaching psychological research methods to undergraduates who have only had an introductory psychology course feel much more manageable. Even though my evidence is primarily anecdotal, students seem less intimidated by the research proposal process because they are more aware of my expectations and the ways in which I want them to utilize the course materials when working on their research proposal. I hope that my experience can inspire other faculty members not only to continue improving their own courses to meet the needs of students but also to advocate for broader curriculum changes in their own departments, and I hope that what I have learned along the way can be used by others to improve how we teach psychological research methods to undergraduates.

References

American Psychological Association. (2014). Strengthening the common core of the introductory psychology course. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, Board of Educational Affairs. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/ed/governance/bea/intro-psychreport.pdf

Breaux, B. O. (2023, May 23-24). Benefiting from explicit instruction, content alignment, and strategic simplification [Poster presentation]. APS-STP 2023 Teaching Institute, Washington, D.C., United States. https://www.dropbox.com/sh/0mc2al4pcshfa90/AABtl7wI32Q8UD8UIJgQ0PDha?dl=0

Chamberlain, K. (1986). Teaching the practical research course. Teaching of Psychology, 13(4), 204-207. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top1304_8

Hughes, S., Lyddy, F., Kaplan, R., Nichols, A. L., Miller, H., Saad, C. G., Dukes, K., & Lynch, A.-J. (2015). Highly prevalent but not always persistent: Undergraduate and graduate student’s misconceptions about psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 42(1), 34–42. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628314562677

Ishak, S., & Salter, N. P. (2017). Undergraduate psychological writing: A best practices guide and national survey. Teaching of Psychology, 44(1), 5–17. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628316677491

Stoloff, M., McCarthy, M., Keller, L., Varfolomeeva, V., Lynch, J., Makara, K., Simmons, S., & Smiley, W. (2010). The undergraduate psychology major: An examination of structure and sequence. Teaching of Psychology, 37(1), 4–15. https://doi.org/10.1080/00986280903426274

Yoder, J. (1979). Teaching students to do research. Teaching of Psychology, 6(2), 85-88. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top0602_7

Zahniser, E., Rupert, P. A., & Dorociak, K. E. (2017). Self-care in clinical psychology graduate training. Training and Education in Professional Psychology, 11(4), 283–289. https://doi.org/10.1037/tep0000172

Teamwork Makes Dreamwork: Encouraging Whole-Class Collaboration in Data Collection Projects

Mon, 27 Nov 2023 20:13:45 GMT

Amanda W. Joyce
Murray State University

Psychological research methods can be a dreaded course for students and instructors alike. Students report negative emotions from and perceptions about about research, they struggle to see the relevance of research-related material, and they are concerned about the complexity of the research process, all of which can negatively impact their understanding of the course content (Balloo, 2019; Murtonen et al., 2008; Rancer et al., 2013). Similarly, instructors broadly report concerns about student tardiness, dishonesty, inattention to material, and lack of preparation (Fazily et al., 2018; Lashley & de Meneses, 2001) which could be exacerbated in challenging courses like research methods.

Thus, innovative techniques are needed to improve student and instructor experiences in research methods. Frequently, this innovation comes in the form of applied, active learning that is directly relevant to student experiences—characteristics which have long been touted as beneficial for student learning (Ball & Pelco, 2006; Etengoff, 2023). In fact, a recent study drawing upon interviews of experienced research methods instructors heavily emphasized the benefits of allowing students to apply what they learned, particularly through hands-on research experiences (Lewthwaite & Nind, 2016).

Involving students in hands-on research experiences, however, can present still more challenges. Individual student projects can lead to a heavy grading burden for instructors, and partnered or group projects can be fraught with interpersonal complaints and social loafing. The purpose of this essay is to explore an option for whole-class collaborative data collection that still allows students individually to propose, analyze, write about, and present data on a project of their own personal choosing. The collaborative data collection process encourages accountability and teamwork.

The Project

Pedagogical Context

At my university, psychological research methods and statistics are taught in a combined three-course sequence, with the third course focusing on hands-on data collection in what is generally the students’ first research project. Enrollment for this third course is typically 15 students, all Psychology majors. The learning objectives for this course require successfully navigating the research process (e.g., “Generate an original research question,” “Conduct a research study in accord with APA’s ethical principles,” etc.). Thus, the learning objectives of the course, as well as the teaching technique I propose here, encourage students to navigate the research process, from idea generation to final presentation.

The Research Project: What Works for Me

I have personally had great luck with an approach to teaching research methods that intermixes individual and group work while leading students through their first ever quantitative research project. I have found it to increase individual accountability and teamwork while reducing many of the headaches associated with individual or paired data collection. I provide a brief overview of the project below. I am also happy to share course resources with interested readers.

Students’ experience with hands-on active learning through research occurs through a semester-long research project that occurs in three main phases: (1) individual idea generation, (2) group questionnaire and database creation, and (3) individual data analyses and presentation.

Individual Idea Generation

Students begin the semester by individually generating research questions. Research shows that students have better learning experiences when they work on projects that are personally meaningful (Andresen et al., 2020), and I have found this to be true in my classes as well. We spend several class periods discussing the contents of a strong research hypothesis that would be testable under the constraints of semester-long project collected on students at their university. For instance, we discuss how longitudinal hypotheses or hypotheses about overly-specific populations who we are unlikely to recruit on campus (i.e., the elderly; fraternity members who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia) would not be appropriate. I also limit students to correlational (as opposed to experimental) research designs, which work best within our collaborative data collection process that emphasizes surveys as the primary data collection method. During the first week of classes, students submit a list of five research questions that they are interested in exploring, which means that they are generating ideas before they have had the benefit of all class discussions on the topic, but generally one or two of their ideas are appropriate, and I am able to guide them toward those ideas.

Then (week 3) students submit a final research question for approval before they dive into their topic of interest. A librarian visits the course to teach students about how to use library resources to find peer-reviewed journal articles on their topics of interest, and students use this information to find five or more articles (week 5), which they summarize and later synthesize into an introduction section for their research paper (week 7).

Group Questionnaire and Database Creation

Students then gather measures relevant to their individual research hypotheses. They often overlap with their peers in their topics of interest, meaning that there is overlap, too, in the measures that they may choose. For instance, one student may be interested in anxiety and sleep quality, while another is interested in fraternity and sorority membership and anxiety, and yet another is interested in sleep quality and religiosity. I encourage students with overlapping topics to work together to find common measures so as to reduce their burden in working with said measures, and I find that they are happy to take this opportunity for reduced workload. When students happen to not have variables in common with their peers, I encourage them to use brief measures, such as short-form versions of scales rather than full scales, so as to reduce participant burden.

Students submit their measures (week 6) and, after I have reviewed each of them, we spend a class period gathering each measure into a class-wide shared Google Doc that will later become the questionnaire packet that participants receive. Combining the measures into a single document during class ensures that everyone has the ability to closely supervise the process and catch any potential errors, like missing items or typographical errors, particularly in overlapping measures, for which several students are very closely monitoring.

Throughout the semester, students learn about the ethical aspects of research, and they have been working through ethical certification (CITI Training). Thus, as soon as measures are gathered, we are ready to submit our project, as a single application, to our institutional review board (IRB) for approval. I submit the application on students’ behalf, but I include the measures and hypotheses that they have provided to me, and we spend one class discussing the contents and importance of the IRB application and process.

In the one to two weeks (usually weeks 7 and 8) needed for IRB approval, the class prepares for data collection. First, we learn about the data collection process and how to write about it. Students learn departmental policies for data collection, including how to reserve rooms, how to use our participant management system (SONA), and more, and they write drafts of methods sections for their final paper.

When students begin collecting data (usually week 8 or 9), they host research sessions individually, but they collect on the full research packet that was approved by the IRB. In other words, even though students collect data individually, they collect data relevant to everyone. This means that they have the ability to share research materials, that they can cover each other’s research sessions in case of emergency, and that they feel a personal accountability to the group to do good research. It also means that they can have a large sample size, typically 100 or more students drawn from our department’s research participant pool. I emphasize throughout the semester how we are a team working toward a common goal, and I find that students will often organically support one another in ways that I haven’t anticipated, such as offering up suggestions about where to find free or cheap printing for research materials.

Similarly, we crowdsource data management. We spend several class periods building a shared class database in Google Sheets. Students are responsible for creating a key for their individual measures so that everyone knows how data should be entered for all measures. Again, in a combination of individual and group efforts, each student is responsible for entering all data that they collect, meaning that they are helping to support not only their own research interests but also their peers’. This shared data entry strategy is another way in which I find students embracing the collaborative nature of this type of work—many will offer to cover data entry for another student when they know the other student is overwhelmed with their participant workload.

Individual Analyses and Presentation

When students finish data collection (week 11 or 12), we can begin the data analysis process. Students are reminded as a group how to run the most common analyses (calculating a scale score from Likert data, determining participant demographics, running a reliability analysis, correlations, and t-tests). Then there are several in-class workdays during which students can practice these analyses on their own data. Each student is responsible for analyzing data relevant to their own research hypothesis. I float around the computer lab to provide support to students with questions, but as there is only one of me, they find additional support in their classmates. Students often answer one another’s questions and double-check analyses. This is easily the most rewarding part of the semester, hearing students teaching and encouraging one another, and cheering when they see statistically significant results.

Following analyses, students are responsible for sharing their results in a final research paper. They previously submitted a draft of an introduction (week 7) and method section (week 9). The initial method draft was written at a time when they did not know their participants’ characteristics, so in that draft, they left placeholders for these numbers. Thus, one of their first tasks after data analyses is to write a new draft of their methods section with these placeholders replaced with actual data. They submit this alongside their results section (week 12) with a discussion section to follow roughly two weeks later. While writing generally can’t be completed fully in class, students have several in-class writing days so that they can consult with the instructor and their peers when questions arise.

Students then learn about data presentation and create a draft poster to be submitted during the last week of class. Again, because students are working on individual research hypotheses, each of these paper and poster drafts are individual, but students have the benefit of receiving feedback from peers and the instructor on drafts at all stages, meaning that final projects are often in phenomenal shape.

Students submit their finished products early during finals week, and then individually present their research to the class during the final examination period. This is another very encouraging part of the semester, as students learn more about their peers’ projects and offer encouragement for their hard work. Furthermore, because the work was approved by the IRB, students are in a very good position to later take their research projects to other venues, such as on-campus undergraduate research conferences and/or regional professional conferences, to share their findings with a broader audience.

The Outcome

The structure of the class research project, intermixing group and individual components is, admittedly overwhelming sometimes, particularly if an individual student must miss class frequently, such as in cases of student athletes. In those cases, the students’ lack of attendance has the potential to harbor everyone’s progress on the collaborative project, so a fair amount of instructor foresight and flexibility is necessary in order to accommodate those absences and ensure that the project can still move forward. That said, I have found the collaboration to be worthwhile. Grades, attendance, and course evaluations have increased since I began collaborative data collection, as have student accountability and teamwork. As students move in and out of group and individual efforts, they see the ways in which they efforts impact themselves and others, and they embrace the process of working toward a common goal.

More than that, students recognize the ways in which collaboration has allowed them to more effectively manage their time so that they are not duplicating efforts. For instance, by pooling their data collection, they avoid saturating the research pool and have access to many more participants than they would if they had collected data individually. Similarly, from the instructor perspective, students’ collaboration allows me to more efficiently work with them (for instance, allowing me to work with one IRB application instead of 15), so that I can free up time to provide more detailed feedback on drafts throughout the semester, which also benefits the students.

Teamwork makes dreamwork. Gone are the days of spending countless office hours listening to students complain about how their research partner isn’t doing their fair share of the work. Gone, too, are the days of trying to grade results sections based on data collected from 7 participants. Instead, I see students working together and holding themselves to a high standard, and I see their efforts resulting in extraordinary outcomes. I hope that others can find relief and excitement in a similar approach.

References

Andresen, L., Boud, D., & Cohen, R. (2020). Experience-based learning. In Understanding adult education and training (pp. 225-239). Routledge.

Ball, C. T., & Pelco, L. E. (2006). Teaching research methods to undergraduate psychology students using an active cooperative learning approach. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 17(2), 147-154.

Balloo, K. (2019). Students’ difficulties during research methods training acting as potential barriers to their development of scientific thinking. Redefining scientific thinking for higher education: Higher-order thinking, evidence-based reasoning and research skills, 107-137. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-24215-2_5

Etengoff, C. (2023). Reframing psychological research methods courses as tools for social justice education. Teaching of Psychology, 50(2), 184-190. https://doi.org/10.1177/00986283221097404

Fazli, A., Imani, E., & Abedini, S. (2018). Faculty members' experience of student ethical problems: A qualitative research with a phenomenological approach. Electronic Journal of General Medicine, 15(3). https://doi.org/10.29333/ejgm/84952

Lashley, F. R., & de Meneses, M. (2001). Student civility in nursing programs: A national survey. Journal of Professional Nursing, 17(2), 81-86. https://doi.org/10.1053/jpnu.2001.22271

Lewthwaite, S., & Nind, M. (2016). Teaching research methods in the social sciences: Expert perspectives on pedagogy and practice. British Journal of Educational Studies, 64(4), 413-430. https://doi.org/10.1080/00071005.2016.1197882

Murtonen, M., Olkinuora, E., Tynjälä, P., & Lehtinen, E. (2008). “Do I need research skills in working life?”: University students’ motivation and difficulties in quantitative methods courses. Higher Education, 56, 599-612. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-008-9113-9

Rancer, A. S., Durbin, J. M., & Lin, Y. (2013). Teaching communication research methods: Student perceptions of topic difficulty, topic understanding, and their relationship with math anxiety. Communication Research Reports, 30(3), 242-251. https://doi.org/10.1080/08824096.2013.806259

How We Aligned our Research-Oriented Curriculum (And You Can Too!)

Wed, 19 Jul 2023 23:12:38 GMT

Daniel A. Clark, Madelynn D. Shell, & Andria F. Schwegler
Texas A&M University--Central Texas

*Note: For the version with the figure included, please follow this link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/9fis1ey479l1vdl/6.%20June_Clark%20et%20al.docx?dl=0

Learning about research and statistics may be a much-maligned element of any undergraduate psychology program from the perspective of students (Harlow et al., 2009), but it is also widely viewed as an important element in psychological literacy (APA, 2013). On the faculty side, teaching these courses is often cited as challenging due to the amount of material required (Ciarocco et al., 2017). Instead of both faculty and students suffering in silence while engaging in these courses, we decided to take steps to improve how we teach all of our research-oriented undergraduate courses with the goal of distributing some of the content in the research methods course across other courses leading up to it. This redistribution of the workload was intended to ensure that students have equitable preparation for research methods and that students leave the program with equivalent experiences.

To start the process, full-time faculty in the undergraduate psychology program began meeting regularly to discuss the desired alignment across the research course sequence (i.e., writing in psychology, statistics, and research methods) and rewrite the course learning outcomes in a manner that captured what we were doing in our individual classes. As academics, we did not always agree on everything, but we were inspired by a desire to improve our teaching and our students’ learning to find common ground. Putting the students’ learning ahead of our own idiosyncratic preferences enabled us to listen to each other’s perspectives, consider multiple ways to achieve a goal, and make decisions based on research across our respective content areas to facilitate learning. Such collaboration acknowledges that each faculty member has the academic freedom to teach using the methodology that they feel is best, but it also recognizes that courses do not exist in a vacuum (for further discussion see Cain, 2014). Courses exist in the context of programs which requires that faculty members come together at the program level to: 1) articulate the scope and quality of education we are providing to our students and 2) develop alignment across the curriculum so students acquire the same basic skills regardless of instructor, enabling them to graduate from the program with comparable knowledge and experiences. On a personal level, we were also seeking to reduce our own frustrations from teaching the research methods course with students who were not adequately prepared for it.

Step 1: Start with the End in Mind

We started by looking at the big picture: skills that were necessary for students to ultimately be successful in the research methods course and their psychology degree in general, rather than being bogged down by individual course outcomes and descriptions. Consistent with previous research on teaching research methodology (Ciarocco et al., 2017; Gurung & Stoa, 2020), we found that our end goals for student performance in the course and in the program aligned quite well despite some differences in structure and content. For example, we agreed that we wanted our students to conduct IRB-approved human subjects research and collect real world data, a high impact practice (American Association of Colleges & Universities, 2013). The larger goal was for these research projects to provide grist for student conference presentations and graduate school applications. Our discussions regarding how we could set our students up for success led to the articulation of fairly specific skills (see Figure 1) that also resulted in clarifying some wording in the program learning outcomes. These specific skills fit our needs well though others might find that broader, more general wording allows for individual variation between faculty.

Figure 1. Skill alignment across three research-oriented courses

Step 2: Back Track to the Beginning

Our program is housed in a regional, upper-level university that offers only junior and senior level courses in partnership with 2-year colleges. The undergraduate psychology degree includes three, four-credit hour research-oriented courses that students take in sequence: writing in psychology, statistics, and research methods. Research methods is a content-heavy class, particularly when designing original research and collecting data as part of the course, so we decided to introduce some of the research methods skills in the prerequisite courses. For example, in many universities, learning APA style starts in introductory or general psychology courses (Fallahi et al., 2006; Gurung et al., 2016). Because our university does not offer introductory-level courses, we added teaching of these skills to the first course in the research sequence, writing in psychology. In addition, we added basic research design to the writing in psychology course, as evidence suggests this can improve scientific reasoning in students at the introductory level (Becker-Blease et al., 2021). These skills prepare students for critically reading research articles not only in the writing in psychology course but across the curriculum.

In addition to shifting skills to the beginning of the program, we moved some skills to the second course in the sequence, statistics, which students take prior to research methods. For example, students often enter research methods not knowing how to write statistical analyses in APA style, create online surveys, or clean and format data in a spreadsheet. These skills are essential to successfully completing the research project in research methods. Instead of waiting to introduce these skills in research methods, we modified the lab portion of the statistics course to include instruction in these areas. Thus, students come into research methods with an introduction to many of the basic skills they will use.

Step 3. Ground the Plan in Learning Research

These revisions have improved consistency and quality across our program because they are aligned with current knowledge about learning. In our discussions, we brought to bear years of research that has documented learning effects that should be incorporated into education. We know that prior knowledge improves subsequent learning, likely by reducing cognitive load (Simonsmeier et al., 2021). Spacing and retrieval practice also enhance learning (Latimier et al., 2021). By introducing important skills in earlier courses, we have made more effective use of these known mechanisms to facilitate learning. For example, as can be seen in Figure 1, relevant aspects of APA style were revisited in all three of the research-oriented courses in the curriculum. Although research methods instructors teach APA style, they now know that these skills have been introduced in previous courses and are able to focus on transfer and application of these skills rather than teaching a brand-new skill. The goal of this explicit attention to introduction/encoding, spacing, interleaving, and retrieval of information is for subsequent learning in research methods to be easier and more long lasting for students.

Step 4. Put it in Writing

After the end skills and curriculum map were sketched out in the first three steps, it was time to put those changes into writing so we could communicate them clearly to our students. We expanded and rewrote the course learning outcomes and the course descriptions so that they directly aligned to each of the program learning outcomes and reflected the scaffolded structure of the content students were expected to demonstrate. We also reviewed course prerequisites to ensure students were acquiring the material in the order we had designed. Using required prerequisites helped ensure that students enrolled in courses to build up their prior knowledge (Lauer et al., 2006). Finally, we discussed required assessments in each course. Although these were minimized to prioritize faculty academic freedom, we identified some core assessments that needed to be included in our courses. For example, a key outcome in research methods was writing a full research manuscript in proper APA style.

Conclusion

By aligning our course learning outcomes with program learning outcomes and identifying exactly where in the program these concepts were introduced and reinforced, we know that students are exposed to basic knowledge before entering research methods. We are also assured that when students graduate from our program, regardless of the section they completed, they are all equipped with the same basic skillset. As a 100% transfer institution, our students come to us with very diverse backgrounds and preparation. Ensuring that every student has the same exposure to essential skills such as APA style, survey development, and statistical analysis before research methods facilitates the process of the data-collection project. Importantly, this plan embeds the high-impact practice of undergraduate research into the required curriculum, creating equitable access and opportunities for all students which have been chronic problems with implementation of these experiences (Zilvinskis et al., 2022). By focusing on broader program and course learning outcomes and using these to align our research-oriented curriculum, we were able to provide our students with a better, more consistent experience, without infringing on faculty academic freedom to choose how they teach these outcomes. We found this was a satisfying blend of faculty subject matter expertise and a collective articulation of expectations and standards that benefitted both our faculty and our students.

References

American Association of Colleges and Universities. (2013). High Impact Practices. Retrieved from: https://www.aacu.org/trending-topics/high-impact

American Psychological Association. (2013). APA Guidelines for the undergraduate psychology major: Version 2.0. Retrieved from: https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/about/undergraduate-major

American Psychological Association. (2011). Principles for quality undergraduate education in psychology. Washington, DC: Author. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/education/undergrad/ principles.aspx

Becker-Blease, K., Stevens, C., Witkow, M. R., & Almuaybid, A. (2021). Teaching modules boost scientific reasoning skills in small and large lecture introductory psychology classrooms. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 7(1), 2–13. https://doi.org/10.1037/STL0000173

Cain, T. R. (2014, November). Assessment and academic freedom: In concert, not Conflict. (Occasional Paper #22). Urbana, IL: University of Illinois and Indiana University, National Institute for Learning Outcomes Assessment. https://www.learningoutcomesassessment.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/OccasionalPaper22.pdf

Ciarocco, N. J., Strohmetz, D. B., & Lewandowski, G. W. (2017). What’s the point? Faculty perceptions of research methods courses. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 3(2), 116–131. https://doi.org/10.1037/STL0000085

Fallahi, C. R., Wood, R. M., Austad, C. S., & Fallahi, H. (2006). A program for improving undergraduate psychology students’ basic writing skills. Teaching of Psychology, 33(3), 171–175. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top3303_3

Gurung, R. A. R., Hackathorn, J., Enns, C., Frantz, S., Cacioppo, J. T., Loop, T., & Freeman, J. E. (2016). Strengthening introductory psychology: A new model for teaching the introductory course. American Psychologist, 71(2), 112–124. https://doi.org/10.1037/A0040012

Gurung, R. A. R., & Stoa, R. (2020). A national survey of teaching and learning research methods: Important concepts and faculty and student perspectives. Teaching of Psychology, 47(2), 111–120. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320901374

Harlow, L. L., Burkholder, G. J., & Morrow, J. A. (2009). Evaluating attitudes, skill, and performance in a learning-enhanced quantitative methods course: A structural modeling approach. Structure Equation Modeling. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15328007SEM0903_6

Latimier, A., Peyre, H., & Ramus, F. (2021). A meta-analytic review of the benefit of spacing out retrieval practice episodes on retention. Educational Psychology Review, 33, 959–978. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10648-020-09572-8

Lauer, J. B., Rajecki, D. W., & Minke, K. A. (2006). Statistics and methodology courses: Interdepartmental variability in undergraduate majors’ first enrollments. Teaching of Psychology, 33(1), 24–30. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top3301_6

Simonsmeier, B. A., Flaig, M., Deiglmayr, A., Schalk, L., & Schneider, M. (2021). Domain-specific prior knowledge and learning: A meta-analysis. Educational Psychologist. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2021.1939700

Zilvinskis, J., Kinzie, J., Daday, J., O’Donnell, K., & Vande Zande, C. (2022). Introduction: When done well – 14 years of chasing an admonition. In J. Zilvinskis, J. Kinzie, J. Daday, K. O’Donnell, & C. Vande Zande (Eds.), Delivering on the promise of high-impact practices: Research and models for achieving equity, fidelity, impact, and scale (pp. 1-12). Stylus.

Introducing Open Science in Undergraduate Psychology Courses

Wed, 05 Jul 2023 18:29:45 GMT

Amanda Mae Woodward
University of Minnesota Twin Cities

Open Science, or the practice of making research transparent and accessible, is becoming more prevalent in psychology research (Santoro, 2022; van der Zee & Reich, 2018). Journals, including Developmental Science and Psychological Science, accept registered reports and award authors badges for engaging in transparent research practices. As open science becomes more widely used, educating future researchers about the values and tools available is important. Graduate students, who have prior research knowledge, may benefit from guides and recommendations as they refine their research skills (Kathawalla et al., 2021). Undergraduate students, many of whom are just beginning to learn about research, may benefit from a more structured introduction to open science.

Infusing open science into undergraduate courses can be beneficial to students planning to enter the field of psychology because they will be introduced to modern research methods and values. Undergraduate students who learn about open science may gain skills that will make them more competitive for graduate school, including programming and communicating research decisions effectively. Further, students may gain a deeper understanding of research workflows as well as a better appreciation of how to evaluate mixed evidence and the importance of replication.

Of course, many undergraduate students do not go on to graduate school (APA, 2016). An introduction to open science can also be beneficial for these students. Activities that introduce undergraduate students to open science can help them refine skills, such as critical and analytical thinking skills, familiarity with software and databases, and evaluating evidence and making decisions, that are beneficial across a wide variety of careers (Naufel et al., 2018). All students, regardless of whether they go to graduate school, will come in contact with research findings in their daily lives. By helping them learn more about transparent and accessible research, these students will be better prepared to be informed consumers.

While introducing students to open science can increase students learning, it may feel like it is adding to the instructor’s burden (many of us struggle to find space to add material given requirements and needs of a single course!). To facilitate the inclusion of open science into the classroom, I have written about the methods I have tried in my courses below. They are listed by category and provide some reflection on the ease of including them in the semester.

Introductory Statistics Courses:

About My Course:

My introductory statistics course is a 4-credit course with a large lecture (~350 students) and a lab component. Students in this course learn both descriptive statistics and inferential statistics using R Programming. To introduce students to Open Science, I include the following:

Pre-registration:

Pre-registrations involve describing your methods and your analyses prior to collecting or analyzing your data. There are several platforms for doing this, including the Open Science Framework (osf.io) and Aspredicted (aspredicted.org). Prior to covering inferential statistics, students in my course are presented with several scenarios, including those where the analyses are planned before data collection, those where data points are removed, or those where they are given no information. Students then discuss which type of evidence they would find more believable and whether they think sharing research plans ahead of time was a good or bad idea. After this discussion, I provide a brief recap of benefits and considerations with pre-registration and students explore the Aspredicted website. Then, I tell students that they will be expected to do a mock pre-registration for the inferential statistics we cover in class.

Students base their mock pre-registration on the prompts for the practice problems I provide in class. Specifically, students are asked to 1) identify the research question, 2) identify the variables in the prompt, 3) describe the scale of measurement used, 4) determine the independent and dependent variables, 5) write their hypotheses, 6) identify the correct statistical test and explain why, and 7) explain what information they will base their conclusion on.

Reflection:

This activity was relatively easy for me to include in my introductory statistics course. The pre-registration includes questions about all the information I typically want students to be able to identify. The main difference is that I am explicitly asking them to mention these pieces, rather than having an implicit expectation that they connect the scale of measurement and scenario to the statistic they calculate. I think pre-registrations help students in the course form connections between the wording of research questions, hypotheses, and analyses.

Advanced Statistics Course:

About My Course:

I teach a smaller, more advanced course that focuses on using R for statistical analyses. This class has approximately 20 students enrolled who meet twice a week. Students work on a final analysis project using existing data.

Pre-registration:

For their secondary analysis project, students complete a pre-registration using the Open Science Framework template, which includes more questions. This step of their project helps them think through their specific research questions, what data they have access to, and what analyses would be appropriate for their project.

Pre-registration Reflection:

This pre-registration activity takes more effort and time than the alteration I made to my introductory course. However, it makes grading their final projects much easier and has led to more student meetings about the analyses they choose. Because this step is due before their data analyses, it gives us time to discuss different approaches to analyzing their data. It also makes them think through how to use the data (e.g., what should they do if they have missing values? Do they want to use summed scores or another approach?). By including this activity, I have shifted some of the work required to grade their final project to the beginning of the semester and I have noticed that their final projects tend to be of a higher quality.

Data and Code Sharing:

In this course, there are several activities related to sharing code and data. First, I model sharing code and data by making all the course notes available via GitHub. I post the “blank shell” notes at the beginning of the class, and “commit” updates of the notes as we complete each learning outcome so students can see the updates in real time. Students in this course are expected to hand in their weekly assignments on GitHub so that they get the same experience of using GitHub. As part of their final project, students are expected to share the code they create and the necessary data on either GitHub or the Open Science Framework.

Beyond assignment submissions, students in this course are also expected to evaluate each other’s code and to provide feedback to code posted on GitHub. This helps them think through what is needed for code to be reproducible as well as to think through ways to make their own files more easily accessible.

Data and Code Sharing Reflection:

Teaching students to use GitHub takes more time and an understanding of how different operating systems work. However, there is very helpful documentation to get started on GitHub and detailed instructions for syncing R Studio with GitHub. Further, there are ways for students to take steps, rather than fully integrating their work with GitHub. For instance, they can download files from GitHub and then reupload it by pointing-and-clicking. Overall, students have appreciated the opportunity to learn about GitHub, even if it was challenging.

Advanced Research Methods courses:

About the Course:

I teach an advanced undergraduate course on open science research methods. This course is approximately 10 students who meet twice a week. In this class, students learn about different aspects of open science and focus on applying what they learn to a replication project across the semester.

Data code and sharing:

Students in this course use available materials to assess the methods used in a study. For instance, they can look at the study design and see how the variables were operationalized. Shared materials also allow students to understand how researchers transform raw data into the forms we often use in analyses because they can walk through the data cleaning code and the analysis script.

Shared materials also facilitate students completing a replication project in their research methods course. My students are currently completing a replication project through Project CREP, which offers a great set of resources on the Open Science Framework to facilitate this process. Students in my course have used these materials to 1) create a pre-registration, 2) to develop a Qualtrics survey to collect data, and 3) have started using available data to complete analyses in R or in JASP.

Reflection:

Admittedly, this course is very easy to include open science topics in because it is the nature of the course. Students in the course have mentioned enjoying the activities mentioned above and have found connections between what they are learning and in their other courses. As the semester has progressed, I have seen the quality of student evaluations of open materials improve.

Content Courses:

Though I have not included open science explicitly in my content courses, I believe some activities, like discussing replications and using open data, could be beneficial. Below are two examples related to cognitive development that I plan to use in the future.

Discussing Replications:

Students in this course will read an article describing a failure to replicate (Oostenbroek et al., 2016) and a response from the original study’s author (Meltzoff et al., 2016). They will be prompted to think about the evidence presented in each paper and to identify factors that could have led to different results. The discussion would continue by having students think what other evidence they may need and how these papers relate to theories concerning imitation and social learning.

Open Data:

There are several open data sources that include visuals. For instance, Wordbank (http://wordbank.stanford.edu/) is an open data source that allows you to examine children’s vocabulary growth around the world. An activity asking students to look at overall trends and as well as trends in specific groups would be one way to highlight a benefit of open data.

Conclusion:

There are many ways to introduce students to open science as part of our courses. Introductions can be short or more in depth, depending on instructor preference and the amount of material covered in a semester. Including these activities across my courses have led to fruitful conversations about cognitive development and about the methods and statistics we use.

References

APA (2016, February). By the numbers: How do undergraduate psychology majors fare? Monitor on Psychology, 47(2), 11.

Kathawalla, U. K., Silverstein, P., & Syed, M. (2021). Easing into open science: A guide for

graduate students and their advisors. Collabra: Psychology, 7(1).

Naufel, K. Z., Spencer, S. M., Appleby, D., Richmond, A. S., Rudman, J., Van Kirk, J., …

Hettich., P. (2019). The skillful psychology student: How to empower students with

workforce-ready skills by teaching psychology. Psychology Teacher Network, 29(1).

Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/ ptn/2019/03/workforce-ready-skills

Santoro, H. (2022, January). Open Science is Surging. Monitor on Psychology, 53(1), 1.

van der Zee, T., & Reich, J. (2018). Open Education Science. AERA

Open, 4(3). https://doi.org/10.1177/2332858418787466

ChatGPT and your assessments: Do they need to change?

Wed, 21 Jun 2023 16:45:18 GMT

Lynne N. Kennette(1) & Phoebe S. Lin(2)
1. Durham College
2. Framingham State University

Since its introduction in November 2022, ChatGPT (https://chat.openai.com/chat) has caused a lot of chatter, especially in educational circles. ChatGPT is a software application that uses artificial intelligence (AI) to simulate human speech and/or writing. Some see it as a cause to re-think assessments or a risk to academic integrity. Others welcome it as a new teaching tool. Regardless of your view, its presence is a good opportunity to re-think our assessments and to examine whether this new technology might be a threat to the skills we expect students to be able to demonstrate during their studies. As such, we provide some food for thought about how faculty might re-consider their assessments in the context of this new tool.

Pedagogy

Although an initial reaction to ChatGPT might be one of concern, it’s important to take a step back and really focus on the pedagogy. Starting with our course learning outcomes may help to re-focus and/or overcome our concerns. For example, do you have a specific learning outcome tied to writing or critical thinking that you need to ensure students are demonstrating (rather than ChatGPT)? If so, maybe there are other ways to focus on those skills in a way that departs from the standard writing assignment. Or, if the ability to detect AI-written text in students’ assignments is relevant for your pedagogical goals, there are several AI detectors which assess the extent to which text is likely to be written by a human rather than a machine. One example of these detectors is GPT-Zero (https://gptzero.me/), which provides general scores for the overall product as well as highlights which sentences are more likely to be written by AI (this sentence-by-sentence analysis is similar to what you see in plagiarism detection software like TurnItIn). So, if writing is a crucial part of your course, then perhaps detecting it will be important. If not, then perhaps writing doesn’t need to be so prominent in your assessments, rendering ChatGPT much less useful for students and consequently less concerning for faculty. Below, we provide some examples below of how instructors might modify or personalize assessments in ways that make it more challenging for AI to produce useful text for students to use. Then, we provide some ideas for how ChatGPT can be used to support student learning, rather than trying to fight against its use.

Assessment Modifications

If you’re concerned about your current assessments, you can modify them. One way to circumvent this type of AI is to ask students to write about something that it doesn’t know about. The data used by ChatGPT is a couple of years old (though they will certainly be updating the corpus of text regularly), so something very recent from the news, or specifically related to students’ direct/campus experience and/or which might not have been written about, or a newly published empirical study will make students have to do at least the majority of the work themselves. Additionally, you could assign something very specific that you have done in class as the basis of a writing assignment. For example, an in-class experiment where you classically conditioned students to salivate to the word Pavlov using sour candy is something that AI likely doesn’t know about. Similarly, asking students to summarize the class’s specific talking points during a debate or group discussion would fit the criteria. Another example of preventing the use of ChatGPT would be to implement a writing assignment that utilizes the self-reference effect that is specific to the institution, for example by requiring students to point to specific student services available at the college and/or buildings/offices on campus. By having students write from their own perspective, this also highlights the self-reference effect, making their recall of the course material more likely. For instance, instructors may assign a writing prompt of “Our university has recently adopted an anti-racist mission statement to better support student learning. Which specific components of this mission statement do you think will have the greatest impact on the campus culture (e.g., which element(s) are you or other students most likely to be able to act upon)? Describe specific ways in which you think this mission statement will impact your experiences on our campus.” In addition to making the course material more personally relevant, another benefit of this is to allow students the opportunity for their authentic human voices to be heard, providing greater potential for them to grow as critical thinkers. Finally, requiring students to interpret or otherwise write about data collected in class and/or the outcome of a study that was (or not) replicated in class may be another way to circumvent the bot by requiring things it doesn’t know anything about.

Another way to limit the usefulness of ChatGPT is to require that specific references be included in the assignment (or the basis of the assignment), which will also make it easier for faculty to detect inaccuracies written by AI. Currently, the AI is not very good at including specific sources as either in-text citations or references, or citing their sources in general (though with a bit of work and the right prompts, it can be done, though still not very effectively). In actuality, sometimes ChatGPT even invents references and sources that don’t exist at all. There are other AI tools such as Perplexity (https://www.perplexity.ai/) that do a much better job with referencing sources; however, students will still have some work to do because sources are websites and may not be scholarly.

Reflections and personal accounts of feelings are more difficult for GPT to do, as are integrating life experiences with specific course concepts. With this type of prompt, ChatGPT will generally begin its response by saying something along the lines of it’s a robot so it can’t really reflect, but then will provide some kind of reflection text. So students can still use this, but it might not be as easy for them to obtain immediately useful text from ChatGPT.

Producing written work (or at least a draft or outline) in class, the old-fashioned way (pen and paper) is one way to limit the number of up-front contributions that ChatGPT can make. Encouraging students to collaborate in groups and produce a mind map or other visual representation of what they will be writing will also deter students from using AI to write for them. Further, implementing group work has been shown to increase the quality of communication in the classroom, establish boundaries for expectations of the amount of work each individual should contribute, and establish respectful social norms that each group member has a valuable contribution to make in the learning process (Aronson, 1978). These activities, if they serve as the basis of a written assignment, cannot be input into ChatGPT (at least not at the current time) because it is not text and therefore students wouldn’t be able to easily use the bot. It would be less work for them to write the assignment themselves than to convert the mind map into text and then somehow feed it to ChatGPT.

Another example of moving away from traditionally written work would be to include more oral work from students, whether live or pre-recorded, in front of the entire class or only the instructor, as a group or individually. There are many possible permutations such as presenting the content that would traditionally be in a paper, or a less traditional format such as an interview (e.g., with a fake researcher) to learn about the topic in question. Added benefits of this teaching technique might include strengthening oral communication skills and building rapport between the students and the instructor.

Using ChatGPT

As the saying goes, “If you can’t beat them, join them.” It is likely that students will be able to (at least somewhat) circumvent anything you try to do to limit their use of ChatGPT, so why not include this AI tool in their assignment? One way that ChatGPT can be leveraged is to help students provide higher quality writing as it can provide students with feedback on their writing. So perhaps you can assess students on how they addressed the feedback provided and their explanation for how they improved their writing. You might require them to submit their original draft, the feedback they received from ChatGPT, and their improved version, along with a reflection/explanation about how they used the feedback and what they found the most challenging to address and also the most helpful feedback they received from ChatGPT.

Since GPT is often inaccurate (especially with references and in-text citations), students could also be tasked with asking it to write something on a particular topic and then tracking down scholarly sources to support the claims made (and if those claims cannot be supported, then re-work the text to reflect that). This will provide students the chance to practice using the library and tracking down sources as well as the mechanics of proper citations and a chance to work on their information literacy skills more broadly. This could be especially valuable in a research methods course to emphasize the rigorous process of publishing scientific research in addition to highlighting the merits of integrity in both writing and research practices.

ChatGPT can also “grade” assignments, so students could ask it to write an assignment and then use the rubric to score it as a starting point. Students would then improve the writing in order to make it a better and more accurate version of what was produced. Again, asking students to reflect on the process and provide specific examples of where ChatGPT was the least accurate according to the rubric (for example) makes use of the tool and forces students to practice their own writing as well. This exercise could help develop stronger reading comprehension skills in addition to writing skills, as this assignment will help them differentiate between weak and strong writing as well as weak and strong arguments. Similarly, students can use AI to summarize research articles that they could then use in a paper where they synthesize or otherwise integrate the information in some way that is appropriate for the course. Alternatively, students could compare the generated summaries to their own and verify its accuracy, identify errors, and reflect on any differences in focus (e.g., perhaps ChatGPT focused its summary on the results of the study whereas students used a lot of their summary to describe the methods).

Transferable Skills

The other consideration, as we try to wrap our heads around the impact of this tool, should be about students’ eventual workplaces. Many workplaces are already using AI to assist in various tasks, whether overtly or covertly (Walia, 2023), and expectations in the workplace will likely adjust in terms of how long tasks should take their employees to complete in light of this new technology. As such, it would be a disservice for faculty not to give students a chance to use this tool and to become more efficient with it. Using AI is likely to become a new transferable skill (also known as a “soft skill”), which should be developed during their studies and then used in whatever workplace they end up. The transferable skill that current students need to develop in order to be competitive in the workforce may no longer be how to write from scratch, but rather, how to critically evaluat what ChatGPT (or a similar tool) is creating and be able to assess its accuracy, quality, and/or build on that text. Much like the invention of the hand-held calculator still required students to evaluate the answer given using their critical thinking skills, a similar skill is likely to be what needs to be developed to contend with ChatGPT. Further, with the increased efficiency of AI use, workers will have more time available in their daily work schedules to devote to more “human” tasks that involve original and creative thinking, such as problem solving or generating new ideas to implement for various projects.

One somewhat recent assessment trend and best practice has been to use authentic (as opposed to disposable) assessments (Jhangiani, 2017; Seraphin et al., 2019). That is, making students’ assessments something that has an audience and purpose beyond the instructor and classroom. For example, asking students in a writing/grammar course to proofread a local business’ website or tasking psychology students to create pamphlets on a particular issue to distribute through a student services office on campus (e.g., studying/memory tips). In this way, these assessments resemble their eventual workplace more and have a clear purpose. What will their eventual workplaces look like? That is the million-dollar question.

Conclusions

Whether friend or foe, its presence in the education landscape cannot be ignored. Moving away from written assignments or including more of a focus on work completed during class can be used by instructors to quickly modify their current assignments in light of the availability of ChatGPT. Although certain approaches to assessments might reduce a student’s ability to use ChatGPT to produce work for courses, perhaps the technology can be used in a way to encourage critical thinking or improve students’ writing skills. Using these types of tools in time-saving ways may be the expectation of workplaces in the not-so-distant future and students would be well-served to understand its functionality in our classrooms.

Disclosure: Although we did not use ChatGPT in any way to write this article, we did ask it for feedback on our writing once we had finished and it thought our writing was organized, clear, and a well-written piece overall (Paraphrase from OpenAI's ChatGPT AI language model, personal communication, February 12, 2023).

References

Aronson, E. (1978). The jigsaw classroom. Sage.

Jhangiani, R. (2017, February 2). Ditching the ‘‘disposable assignment’’ in favor of open pedagogy. E-xcellence in Teaching Blog.http://teachpsych.org/E-xcellence-in-Teaching-Blog/4583103

Seraphin, S. B., Grizzell, J. A., Kerr-German, A., Perkins, M. A., Grzanka, P. R., & Hardin, E. E. (2019). A conceptual framework for non-disposable assignments: Inspiring implementation, innovation, and research. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 18(1), 84-97. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475725718811711

Walia, P. (2023, February 9). Study finds more workers using ChatGPT without telling their bosses. Techspot. https://www.techspot.com/news/97553-study-finds-more-workers-using-chatgpt-without-telling.html

More than Meets the Eye: Using Auditory Demonstrations to Teach Gestalt Principles

Mon, 10 Apr 2023 21:01:27 GMT

Jason S. McCarley (1), Raechel N. Soicher (2), & Jannah R. Moussaoui (1)
(1: Oregon State University, 2: Massachusetts Institute of Technology)

*Note: For the version with figures and additional resources included, please follow this link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/81a6jalwql5uy4y/March_McCarley_et_al.pdf?dl=0

The Gestalt principles of perceptual organization are a staple of undergraduate psychology. Examples like those in Figure 1 are common in Intro Psych, Cognitive, and Sensation & Perception textbooks, and discussion of the psychology behind them is important for a number of reasons. Historically, the Gestalt movement was an enormously influential school of thought (Rock & Palmer, 1990; Wagemans et al., 2012). Practically, the Gestalt principles are useful for designing displays, graphs, and lecture slides (Kosslyn, 2006; Moore & Fitz, 1993; Wickens et al., 2022). And pedagogically, the Gestalt phenomena reveal perceptual processes that students might normally take for granted.

Figure 1. Visual demonstrations of three familiar Gestalt principles.

Discussion of Gestalt grouping typically focuses on visual processes, like those illustrated in the figure. But perceptual organization isn’t exclusive to vision; Gestalt processes are also necessary to organize messy sensory inputs in other senses, including touch (Gallace & Spence, 2011) and hearing (Bregman, 1990). In hearing, specifically, Gestalt processes help turn soundwaves crashing on the eardrum into a mental representation of the sound sources around us. Bregman (1990) used the term auditory scene analysis to describe the perceptual organization of sound, and auditory streams to denote the output of this analysis. An auditory stream is thus the analogue of a visual object or group.

To accompany his book on auditory scene perception, Bregman provided demonstrations of auditory Gestalt effects. These are useful classroom demonstrations in two ways. First, they establish a unifying principle, showing students that perceptual organization operates in similar ways across different senses. Second, they make Gestalt phenomena accessible to students with visual disabilities.

Below, we present three of Bregman’s auditory examples that can be used as classroom demonstrations in discussions of Gestalt grouping. For each one, we describe and illustrate the analogous visual effect, and explain the correspondence between the auditory and visual phenomena. We also provide links to downloadable ﬁles, made available by Bregman, that demonstrate the auditory phenomena.

A larger set of examples is available on Dr. Bregman’s website.

Grouping by Similarity

In vision, the Gestalt principle of similarity says that items that look alike tend to group with one another. In theory, for example, we could see the dots in Figure 1A as forming columns, arbitrary clusters, or no pattern at all. Instead, we tend to group the dots by color, into rows.

In his demonstration of auditory grouping by similarity, Bregman manipulates pitch to gradually segregate a series of notes into two streams. Figure 2 provides a schematic illustration. The stimulus is a well-known melody interleaved with random distractor tones. To begin, the melody and distractors are within the same pitch range, and the melody is camouﬂaged. As it plays repeatedly, the melody gradually moves into a higher pitch range. Eventually, it segregates from the distractor tones and becomes recognizable. Pitch here plays the same role as color does in Figure 1: sounds of similar pitch are grouped into a distinct auditory stream, standing out from sounds of dissimilar pitch.

Figure 2. Auditory grouping by similarity of pitch. A: When a melody is embedded amongst distractor tones from the same pitch range, it is effectively camouflaged. Here, the notes outlined in black represent the melody and the notes without outlines represent the distractors. B: When the melody and distractors are in different pitch ranges, the melody stands out and is easy to recognize.

Grouping by Proximity

The principle of proximity holds that items near one another are grouped together. In vision, proximity is spatial. In Figure 1B, for instance, the vertical separation between dots is smaller than the horizontal separation, and as a result, we perceive the dots as forming columns.

In hearing, proximity is temporal. Bregman’s demonstration, illustrated in Figure 3, interleaves a series of three descending tones with a series of three ascending tones. The descending tones are in a higher pitch range than the ascending tones. To begin, the tones are played slowly, and we hear a series of notes jumping back and forth between pitch ranges. Next, the tones are played quickly. Now, temporal proximity and similarity combine to segregate the ascending and descending series into two distinct streams that seem to run simultaneously. Near enough to one another in time, the tones of similar pitch group.

Figure 3. Auditory grouping by proximity. A: When interleaved high and low tones are played slowly, we hear a single sequence that jumps between pitch ranges. B: When the interleaved tones are played quickly, notes of similar pitch group together. We perceive two simultaneous streams, one high-pitched and one low-pitched.

Grouping by Connectedness

The principle of connectedness (Rock & Palmer, 1990) holds that items connected to one another are grouped together. Figure 1C shows the inﬂuence of visual connectedness. Dots alternate color from top to bottom, and are closer together horizontally than vertically. But because they are linked by thin vertical lines, the dots perceptually group to form columns. Here, connectedness overpowers similarity and proximity.

Bregman’s demonstration of grouping by connectedness shows an equally powerful effect. Figure 4 illustrates. In the unconnected condition, a series of tones alternates between high (“beep”) and low (“boop”) pitch. The impression is of two distinct streams, one high-pitched (“Beep. Beep. Beep…”) and one low-pitched (“Boop. Boop. Boop…”). In the connected condition, a smoothly rising and falling tone is interposed between the low- and high-pitched tones. Now, we hear a single stream of sound, smoothly modulating between high and low (“Beeeeooooeeeeoooo…”). Just as in vision, connectedness transforms isolated fragments into a unified perceptual object.

Figure 4. Auditory grouping by connectedness. A: When interleaved high and low tones are unconnected, we hear separate high- and low-pitched streams. B: When high and low tones are connected by a rising and falling tone, we here a single, undulating auditory stream.

Conclusion

The Gestalt principles are foundational knowledge for psych undergrads. Teaching them with an exclusive focus on vision, though, can limit their accessibility and give students an unduly narrow view of the role they play in our mental life. Auditory demonstrations give us a way to expand the reach and impact of our lessons on perceptual organization.

References

Bregman, A. S. (1990). Auditory scene analysis: The perceptual organization of sound. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Gallace, A., & Spence, C. (2011). To what extent do gestalt grouping principles influence tactile perception? Psychological Bulletin, 137(4), 538–561. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0022335

Kosslyn, S. M. (2006). Graph design for the eye and mind. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Moore, P., & Fitz, C. (1993). Using Gestalt theory to teach document design and graphics. Technical Communication Quarterly, 2(4), 389–410. https://doi.org/10.1080/10572259309364549

Rock, I., & Palmer, S. (1990). The Legacy of Gestalt Psychology. Scientific American, 263(6), 84–90. https://doi.org/10.1038/scientificamerican1290-84

Wagemans, J., Elder, J. H., Kubovy, M., Palmer, S. E., Peterson, M. A., Singh, M., & von der Heydt, R. (2012). A century of Gestalt psychology in visual perception: I. Perceptual grouping and figureground organization. Psychological Bulletin, 138(6), 1172–1217. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029333

Wickens, C. D., Helton, W. S., Hollands, J. G., & Banbury, S. (2022). Engineering psychology and human performance (5th edition). New York, NY: Routledge.

Creating Inclusive Classroom Environments through the Implementation of Equitable Teaching Practices

Thu, 02 Mar 2023 21:06:29 GMT

Vanessa Woods
(University of California, Santa Barbara)

To truly create equity, a university must make sure that every student, regardless of background, can be successful. However, the reality is that students from groups that have been marginalized in higher education are entering a university that is not designed for them (e.g., needing to navigate the “hidden curriculum;” Laiduc & Covarrubias, 2022), and the responsibility for ensuring success begins with the instructor. My overall objective as an educator is to create learning opportunities that are engaging, meaningful, and motivating to students from diverse backgrounds. I strive to create inclusive learning environments in my courses and to make them relevant to students’ lives.

Combatting the Hidden Curriculum

There are three primary ways I create inclusive learning environments to promote motivation and engagement for all students. First, I create learning environments that include elements set up to combat the hidden curriculum for those students who are from marginalized groups (Laiduc & Covarrubias, 2022). To combat the hidden curriculum, I use explicit welcome and belonging messages in my syllabus, discuss what office hours are for, and continue to message throughout the course to convey this is their space, and my commitment to supporting them in their learning endeavors. The welcome message serves as a statement of community and conveys my appreciation for the strengths students bring into the space, and the belonging message explicitly conveys my belief they can be successful in the course and major. This includes repeated messaging that:

1) students belong in the course and major,

2) students bring important perspectives and ideas to our classroom space,

3) I believe they can be successful in my challenging high-work courses,

4) there are mechanisms for growth and improvement in the course structure,

5) it is normal to sometimes struggle with content, and

6) I am here to guide and coach them through that process.

My teaching messages and practices have been informed by the literature on wise interventions, which underscore the importance of thinking about students' needs in academic settings in order to support students' ability to reframe inferences related to belonging. I embed meeting these needs in messages to motivate diverse students to engage effectively in the course (Laiduc & Covarrubias, 2022). Further, recent scholarship demonstrates that the syllabus can be an important tool to communicate instructor support for equity and inclusion, and as a tool to highlight a student/learner centered design for the course (Fuentes, Zelaya, Madsen, 2021; Richmond et al., 2019). For example, I include the following welcome message in my syllabus:

“Our Course Community– As participants in a required pre major course in Psychological and Brain Sciences we all share an interest in the mind and behavior. I am excited to see where you will take your knowledge of methods in Psychology when you write your research proposal for this course. I value a diverse set of viewpoints and I welcome the strengths and talents you bring to the table as part of our community in this research methods course.”

I also include a belonging message as well that reads:

“You as a Researcher–You belong in Psychological and Brain Sciences and you belong here in this class as an undergraduate researcher. We have complete confidence in your ability to be an active capable member of this course. We also have complete confidence in your ability to develop your research and writing skills, and we are committed to guiding you through this process. Please feel free to discuss these things with Dr. Woods.*”

Additionally, this kind of messaging is woven into my lectures and in the ways I engage the students when talking about the course structure.

Providing Scaffolding for Student Success

The second way I support inclusive classroom environments is to ensure that there are appropriate mechanisms to scaffold students to be successful in the course. I build in assignment scaffolding, revision opportunities, along with both individual and group exams, as well as exam retakes during finals, to ensure students can be supported in their learning. These structures provide different formative opportunities to demonstrate their learning, and contribute to a collaborative and collegial learning environment for students (Ambrose et al., 2010; Boothe et al., 2018). I carefully structure the content and pace of my courses so that students’ knowledge can build incrementally. For example, when writing a research proposal, I have five small assignments that culminate in the students having a draft of their proposal done 2 weeks before it is due. My assignments are developed to both guide the student through the material, foster autonomy, and reinforce working hard to improve with opportunities for revision (e.g., writing, peer review, feedback).

I started recording insight discussions which are small groups of students discussing how they approached difficult course concepts and how they overcame the challenging content and gained insights into effective learning strategies. Informal student feedback (e.g. mid quarter feedback surveys, student discussion posts) suggests students find these insight discussions from their peers very useful; students like knowing that someone else had to struggle to understand a concept (helping to reframe the challenge of the course). On my exams, I ask integrative questions (e.g., authentic assessments) to test the students’ ability to put together information they have learned from different sources, and to apply this knowledge to a novel and real-world situation (Nolan et al., 2020). I design assignments that can foster the development of the students ability to think and practice as psychologists and neuroscientists by using structured peer review (Adler-Kassner & Wardle 2022; Miller-Young & Boman 2017; Woods, Safronova, & Adler-Kassner 2021). Cumulatively, my course practices and assessments give students multiple ways of gaining knowledge and of demonstrating their understanding of course concepts.

Promoting a Welcoming & Engaging Classroom Environment

The third way I support inclusive learning environments that promote belonging is to promote a comfortable, welcoming, and engaging classroom climate that encourages students to actively engage with content and learn from each other (Felten, 2020). When I set up group work, I have sections that promote students getting to know each other, and assign ways for students to have clear roles in the group (e.g., the person who likes dogs the best is the person who scribes for the worksheet, the person who likes Halloween the best is the one who ensures that everyone contributed to the discussion). I try to get to know the students with informal polls and chatting with them before class starts, to build relationships and to get a sense of each unique student. I create an open and warm classroom environment so that students are encouraged to ask questions or to express their point of view, using frequent in class questions that require some discussion. I strive to show cultural competence in my ways of communication to ensure that students who take my courses gain confidence in their abilities, and learn how to study and organize knowledge in meaningful ways (Tanner & Allen, 2017). I model tolerance and openness to opposing viewpoints so that students can feel safe in expressing their ideas and opinions. Specifically, last year I asked the students to help me stop using the phrase “you guys” so I could work on using non-gendered terms, and the class was very supportive in “catching” me and stopping me so I could reframe my language. This also modeled for students that we can make mistakes, while still being active members of the course that belong in the major.

The strategies I have used to promote inclusive learning environments to combat hidden curriculum, including intentional course structure for learning, improvement, and creating a welcoming class climate, have been developed through many discussions with colleagues who value inclusion. My colleagues work to create classroom structures fostering belonging (Wilson et al., 2019), and that includes storytelling to engage students and foster knowledge application to real world situations (Alea Albada, 2022). Further, my inclusive strategies have been influenced by reading work that emphasizes kindness, affirmation, and communal goals (Estrada et al., 2019), and the importance of validating student’s experiences (Rendon, 1994). I was inspired by thoughtful workshops by Kimberly Tanner and Viji Sathy on best classroom practices for equity.

My understanding of how to think about creating inclusive classroom environments includes thinking about the deep teaching practices; self-awareness, empathy, classroom climate, leveraging campus student support service network (Dewsbury, 2019). The growth and energy I have gained come in collaborative spaces and in conversation. I have realized how important it is to get to know your students as people. Consider taking the extra five minutes with a student asking about their hobbies, or goals, or passions, or starting a conversation with a colleague about what can be done to create more inclusion in the spaces you occupy. If we all add one or two small things that can foster inclusion, we can change our teaching and learning practices to promote equity in higher education and create real change.

*Feel free to wordsmith the examples to suit your perspectives for your course, while citing appropriately.

References

Adler-Kassner, L., & Wardle, E. (2022). Writing Expertise: A Research-Based Approach to Writing and Learning Across Disciplines. Clearinghouse.

Alea Albada, N. (2022). Try Telling a Story: Why Instructors Share Personal Stories with Students. https://teachpsych.org/E-xcellence-in-Teaching-Blog/12941535

Ambrose, S., Bridges, M., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M., and Norman, M. (2010). How learning works: 7 Research-based Principles for Smart Teaching. Jossey-Bass.

Boothe, K. A., Lohmann, M. J., Donnell, K. A., & Hall, D. D. (2018). Applying the principles of universal design for learning (UDL) in the college classroom. Journal of Special Education Apprenticeship, 7(3), n3.

Dewsbury, B. M. (2019). Deep teaching in a college STEM classroom. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 15(1), 169–191. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-018-9891-z

Estrada, M., Eroy-Reveles, A., & Matsui, J. (2018). The influence of affirming kindness and community on broadening participation in STEM career pathways. Social Issues and Policy Review, 12(1), 258–297. https://doi.org/10.1111/sipr.12046

Felten, P. (2020). Critically reflecting on identities, particularities and relationships in student engagement. In A handbook for student engagement in higher education (pp. 148-154). Routledge.

Fuentes, M. A., Zelaya, D. G., & Madsen, J. W. (2021). Rethinking the course syllabus: Considerations for promoting equity, diversity, and inclusion. Teaching of Psychology, 48(1), 69-79. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1177/0098628320959979

Laiduc, G., & Covarrubias, R. (2022). Making meaning of the hidden curriculum: Translating wise interventions to usher university change. Translational Issues in Psychological Science, 8(2), 221. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/tps0000309

Miller‐Young, J., & Boman, J. (2017). Uncovering ways of thinking, practicing, and being through decoding across disciplines. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 2017(150), 19-35. https://doi-org.proxy.library.ucsb.edu:9443/10.1002/tl.20235

Nolan, S. A., Bakker, H. E., Cranney, J., Hulme, J. A., & Dunn, D. S. (2020). Project assessment: An international perspective. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 6(3), 185. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/stl0000217

Rendon, L. I. (1994). Validating culturally diverse students: Toward a new model of learning and student development. Innovative higher education, 19(1), 33-51.

Richmond, A. S., Morgan, R. K., Slattery, J. M., Mitchell, N. G., & Cooper, A. G. (2019). Project Syllabus: An exploratory study of learner-centered syllabi. Teaching of Psychology, 46(1), 6-15. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1177/0098628318816129

Tanner, K., & Allen, D. (2007). Cultural competence in the college biology classroom. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 6(4), 251-258. https://doi-org.proxy.library.ucsb.edu:9443/10.1187/cbe.07-09-0086

Wilton, M., Gonzalez-Niño, E., McPartlan, P., Terner, Z., Christofferson, R. E., Rothman, J. H. (2019). Improving academic performance, belonging, and retention through increasing structure of an introductory biology course. CBE—Life Sciences Education 18(ar53), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.18-08-0155

Woods, V. E., Safronova, M., & Adler-Kassner, L. (2021). Guiding Students Towards Disciplinary Knowledge With Structured Peer Review Assignments. Journal of Higher Education Theory & Practice, 21(4).

Learning content while learning to code

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 02:18:50 GMT

Michael Dubois
(University of Toronto)

Introduction

While preparing to teach a course for the first time, I was keenly aware of the little time I had with students, and the consequent limits in how much material I could reasonably cover. Doubtless, many other instructors find it difficult to narrow down which topics can be included in a course, and to what degree of detail. Relatedly, scientific publications are being produced at ever-increasing rates, with the total sum of publications in the hundreds of millions (often languishing unread in piles on desks and desktops). With such a volume of extant literature, it is simply not feasible to cover everything.

Complicating the dilemma between time and the quantity of facts is the increasing demand for students to learn skills (as found in “Psynopsis: Education Issue,” 2021).

Skills-based education is critical in supporting students after graduation: more than 1-million undergraduates take introductory psychology each year (Gurung et al., 2016), but nearly 60% of psychology graduates do not obtain further education. Furthermore, around 50% of those graduates will obtain careers in sales, marketing, management, and other businesses where there is little need for specific course-related information (Carnevale, Gainer, & Meltzer, 2020), but greater demand for general cognitive and technical skills.

The American Psychological Association’s Committee on Associate and Baccalaureate Education (CABE) reports that employers are interested in employees with skills across 5 broad domains: cognitive, communication, personal, social, and technological (Appleby et al., 2019; Hettich, 2021).

Thus, while instructors need to carefully choose materials relevant to the course, they must simultaneously consider how their teaching addresses the broader needs of students—both within individual courses, and beyond university life. I contend that instructors must creatively find ways to “double dip”—presenting course content via pedagogical methods that concurrently develop students’ professional skillset.

Specifically, teaching students computer coding skills and giving them the opportunity to practice those skills in class are useful ways of presenting course materials in an engaging way, and fostering the mastery of practical and employable skills.

By “computer coding,” specifically, I am referring to the use of text-based computer code in collecting, combining, cleaning, analyzing, and visualizing experimental psychology data. In my practice, this takes the form of using the R programming language (R Core Team, 2019): a data file (CSV format) containing behavioural responses for one participant are combined into a single larger file; this larger file is then cleaned and prepared for further analysis; finally, variables are compared (descriptively and inferentially), and presented in a graphical format.

How would this look in practice?

Implementing coding in class can be extremely flexible, and tailored to meet the desires of students and instructors alike. An effective “crash course” can take as little as a single class, with more substantial integration lasting the duration of a course.

One technique I recommend is allowing students to find data (class-relevant, and personally interesting) to explore themselves. For instance, a student in developmental psychology could find data for child behaviours to compare with adults.

In all cases, early instruction should cover the particular programming language and syntax that students will use, and how to acquire the relevant software. Students can be briefly taught how to perform basic operations on data in furtherance of answering a research question. Finally, instructors should demonstrate how to use online resources to extend their basic knowledge of coding.

What pedagogical goals can coding support?

Including any degree of coding provides at least an initial step toward facilitating students’ mastery of skills and future employability: this includes both the technical skill of coding, and the cognitive skills that coding demands (e.g., developing questions, selecting analysis methods, interpreting results). Such cognitive skills are directly relevant to student learning and performance outcomes (Krain, 2010).

Importantly, there are also many pedagogical benefits associated with implementing coding in class.

Here I emphasize three of the APA’s Principles for Quality Undergraduate Education in Psychology (2011):

Principle #1: Students are responsible for monitoring and enhancing their own learning.

The approach I have proposed is empowering for students. First, they choose a dataset and determine what variables it contains, and what question(s) to answer. Next, they must extend a (presumably) cursory knowledge of coding skills to answer their question. Importantly, errors offer a critical opportunity reflect and adapt. Finally, students should be encouraged to present their work to peers (or other non-experts). Many programming languages include methods for producing polished “reports” (e.g. Rmarkdown, Jupyter Notebooks)—these make an excellent class assignment or final project, and emphasize communicating knowledge.

Together, students are primarily responsible for each step throughout the coding process, with instructors only helping to guidance/direct thereafter. By assuming responsibility, students will be more invested and interested in the material they encounter; student interest is a key predictor of many positive outcomes—from motivation and effort (McManus, 1986a, 1986b), to learning and retention (Lester, 2013; Subramaniam, 2009).

Principle #2: Faculty strive to become scientist–educators who are knowledgeable about and use the principles of the science of learning.

Like any skill, mastery of coding requires multiple practice sessions. Helpfully, one of the most robust and evidenced pedagogical principles is that repeating and distributing learning over time is linked to greater learning (Delaney, Verkoeijen, & Spirgel, 2010). Thus, instructors should consider assigning multiple coding exercises—whether different analyses of the same data, or exploring new data all together—to support students’ mastery of the coding skill, and also learning course content.

The approach I describe has a large overlap with principles of “active learning”—the idea that students learn more when they are participants in learning, and not merely passive recipients (Nelson, 2008; Park et al., 2021). Indeed, active participation is one of the fundamental elements of coding instruction from training organizations such as The Carpentries (Atwood et al., 2019).

Principle #3: Psychology departments and programs create a coherent curriculum.

As noted by the APA’s Introductory Psychology Initiative (IPI), the varying domains of psychology are linked by a common foundation of scientific inquiry (The American Psychological Association (APA), 2021). This common foundation is often only taught in research methods classes (or not at all), which can leave students with a tenuous understanding of the higher-order processes that unite the field of psychology. I propose that including coding in multiple psychology classes, even to a minimal degree, can help bridge this conceptual gap.

Additionally, by implementing coding early and often in a curriculum, students are able to take concepts and skills acquired in lower-level classes and further develop them during upper-level classes (another form of distributed practice).

Finally, the IPI notes that a high-quality curriculum should include an “integrative/capstone experience,” and emphasizes the acquisition of knowledge & skills that are directly relevant to students’ lives. I propose that a thorough and rigorous analysis of data is an excellent example of such an activity!

This has often been (partially) accomplished via honours thesis projects, however, knowledge of coding introduces several alternatives: having students analyze data collected by faculty, partnering with community organizations to analyze their data, or reanalyzing previously published datasets. Learning (both the coding skill, and the psychological content) benefits when the learning is related to real-world applications and problems (Yurco, 2014).

Coding concerns

Before concluding, I thought it important to address several concerns that instructors and/or students may have.

Given this approach to teaching is necessarily technical (in fact, having students acquire the technical skill is one of the primary goals), consideration should be given to both hardware and software.

First, hardware (computers) is required, but this can take many forms: including student-owned laptops, or institutional computers (library, computer labs, etc.). Most data analyses have fairly low graphical and computing demands, meaning that essentially any computer is suitable.

Second is software. Many extremely popular coding languages (R, Python) operate in software that are fully functional and open-source (i.e. free). The only requirement is access to an internet browser and sufficient computer memory to download the program.

More recently, cloud-based computing environments (Posit Cloud, Jupyter Notebook) have been developed as alternatives to locally stored software, which allows for all students and instructors to share a single technical space and avoids many of the technical conflicts that occur due to different operating systems, software versions, packages, etc.

Another potential concern relates to the limited level of familiarity and expertise in coding that students (and instructors for that matter) may bring into the class. On one hand, I believe this concern could be applied equally well to limited knowledge of course material. Still, different coding languages vary a great deal in their perceived levels of difficulty. As such, when deciding how to integrate coding into classes, instructors should consider what level of difficulty students can reasonably manage, given their abilities.

Moreover, students and instructors should be reassured that they will be supported in learning to code with an abundance of online resources. Although open-source software does not come with access to formal support services (like a “help desk”), they are often rooted within vibrant communities who share documents, guides, example code, workshop materials, videos, and even forums to discuss problems and solutions. Instructors should seriously consider which supports they intend to use (and share with students) in order to provide maximal scaffolding during the learning process.

Lastly, I will address student assessment—in terms of both the format and content.

Given the flexibility instructors have in implementing coding, there is similar flexibility in the format of student assessment. For instance, instructors can still use traditional written exams containing standard question formats (multiple-choice, true-or-false, etc.). Conversely, instructors can emphasize more advanced assessment types such as completing code exercises (fill-in-the-blanks, or open-ended), giving presentations, or producing analysis reports.

Regarding the content of class assessments, I suggest following the APA’s emphasis on transferable skills (Appleby et al., 2019). For instance, communication skills can be assessed by having students give presentations or write reports on their analyses; critical thinking can be assessed by having students explain their decision-making processes when choosing between different analysis options; information management ability can be assessed by having students explain how they interpret their analysis findings.

Conversely, coding skills should not be the primary focus of assessment. First, many different coding solutions achieve the same outcomes (making grade assignment difficult). Second, given the dynamic and ever-evolving lifecycle of code and packages, it is not important to assess the particular syntax students use (so long as it is of practical utility).

Importantly, including any of these assessments do not preclude assessing course facts and concepts. Instead, it simply shifts the emphasis of learning outcomes being measured to provide greater balance between course content and skills.

Conclusion

Let us return to the original instructor’s dilemma: covering all of the relevant facts and findings is likely impossible, given the finite contact hours with students. This is especially true when considering the need to teach students the cognitive and technical skills they will need later in life.

I suggest that we can resolve (or at least address) this dilemma by using coding as the fundamental medium by which students engage the key concepts of psychology. This will help support students develop their ability to explore and evaluate data (conceptually and practically), while still exposing them to the key ideas and class material. Moreover, this approach leverages multiple pedagogical principles (distributed practice, active learning) that are known to improve student learning outcomes.

The general nature of coding, and the increasing availability of online data and supporting resources, make this endeavour quite feasible—while still offering significant flexibility to the varied needs of institutions and individuals.

Take a moment to ask yourself this question: “what do I want my students to remember in five years?” Whatever your answer, how can you make that outcome a reality? Including elements of computer coding may be an effective means to that end.

References

Appleby, D. C., Young, J., Kirk, J. Van, Rudmann, J., Naufel, K. Z., Spencer, S. M., … Richmond, A. S. (2019). Transferable Skills: The Skillful Psychology Student. American Psychological Association.

Atwood, T. P., Creamer, A. T., Dull, J., Goldman, J., Lee, K., Leligdon, L. C., & Oelker, S. K. (2019). Joining Together to Build More: The New England Software Carpentry Library Consortium. Journal of EScience Librarianship, 8(1), e1161. https://doi.org/10.7191/jeslib.2019.1161

Carnevale, A. P., Gainer, L. I., & Meltzer, A. S. (2020). Workplace Basics: the competencies employers want. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED319979

Delaney, P. F., Verkoeijen, P. P. J. L., & Spirgel, A. (2010). Spacing and Testing Effects: A Deeply Critical, Lengthy, and At Times Discursive Review of the Literature. Psychology of Learning and Motivation - Advances in Research and Theory (1st ed., Vol. 53). Elsevier Inc. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0079-7421(10)53003-2

Hettich, P. (2021). What Skills Do Employers Seek? Four Perspectives. Eye on Psi Chi Magazine, 26(1), 20–24. https://doi.org/10.24839/2164-9812.Eye26.1.20

Krain, M. (2010). The effects of different types of case learning on student engagement. International Studies Perspectives, 11(3), 291–308. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1528-3585.2010.00409.x

Lester, D. (2013). A review of the student engagement literature. Focus on Colleges, Universities, and Schools, 7(1), 1–8.

McManus, J. L. (1986a). “Live” Case Study/Journal Record in Adolescent Psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 13(2), 70–74. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top1302_5

McManus, J. L. (1986b). Student Composed Case Study in Adolescent Psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 13(2), 92–93. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top1302_14

Nelson, C. E. (2008). Teaching evolution (and all of biology) more effectively: Strategies for engagement, critical reasoning, and confronting misconceptions. Integrative and Comparative Biology, 48(2), 213–225. https://doi.org/10.1093/icb/icn027

Park, E. S., Harlow, A., AghaKouchak, A., Baldi, B., Burley, N., Buswell, N., … Sato, B. (2021). Instructor facilitation mediates students’ negative perceptions of active learning instruction. PLoS ONE, 16(12 December), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0261706

Psynopsis: Education Issue. (2021). Psynopsis, 43(3). Retrieved from https://www.ptonline.com/articles/how-to-get-better-mfi-results

R Core Team. (2019). R: A Language and Environment for Statistical Computing. Vienna, Austria: R Foundation for Statistical Computing. Retrieved from https://www.r-project.org/

Subramaniam, P. R. (2009). Motivational Effects of Interest on Student Engagement and Learning in Physical Education : A Review. Int J Phys Education, 46(2), 11–20.

The American Psychological Association (APA). (2011). APA Principles for Quality Undergraduate Education in Psychology. The American Psychological Association (APA).

The American Psychological Association (APA). (2021). APA Introductory Psychology Initiative (IPI) Student Learning Outcomes for Introductory Psychology. The American Psychological Association, (OCTOBER), 2021. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/about/policy/introductory-psychology-initiative-student-outcomes.pdf

Yurco, P. (2014). Student-Generated Cases: Giving Students More Ownership in the Learning Process. Journal of College Science Teaching, 043(03), 54–58. https://doi.org/10.2505/4/jcst14_043_03_54

Applying the Biopsychosocial Model to Teaching and Learning

Sat, 17 Dec 2022 00:56:50 GMT

Amanda Cappon & Lynne N. Kennette
(Durham College, Oshawa, Ontario)

Every student is unique. They enter our classrooms at varying ages and stages in their life. Students present with differing learning preferences and motivations, and as educators in post-secondary institutions, we are a font-line point of contact, privy to this diversity in our students. Valuing this diversity and further striving to provide inclusive learning spaces in the classroom, we believe that educators of any discipline can benefit from using the biopsychosocial model.

The following article will first describe the model and its origins, link it to a “whole student” perspective, and then apply it to students’ current learning space and eventual workplace. Finally, it will connect the biopsychosocial model to principles of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI).

The Biopsychosocial Model

Each of us is a product of both nature (our innate genetic make-up and personality) and nurture (our experiences and social-cultural exposures), which interact to create the unique combination that makes us, us. The biopsychosocial model originated in the 1970s through George Engel (see Fava & Sonino, 2017). Engel worked in psychiatry at the time and the biomedical model was considered the gold standard, but Engel saw the medical model as reductionistic, so he sought to expand it to integrate knowledge from the behavioural and social sciences which led to the inception of the biopsychosocial approach (Fava & Sonino, 2017).

Below is an adapted chart which readers may find useful in understanding the biopsychosocial model as it might relate to the students in their classrooms. We have based our version, which we have adapted for the focus of this paper, on a previous synthesis from the PsychDB psychiatry reference database (PsychDB, n.d.). Please note that this is not intended for educators to pry into the personal lives of their students. Rather, this chart and the model itself, can be used to shift perspective in acknowledging the diversity of our students and the internal and external challenges they may be dealing with while in our classrooms.

Biopsychosocial Model for Students
	Biological	Psychological	Social and Cultural
Predisposing Factors (What are the longstanding factors in the student’s life that may be affecting their functioning?)	Genetics Medical conditions Learning or developmental disorders	Interactions with peers Cognitive style Self-esteem	Poverty Access to mental health care Exposure to conflicts
Precipitating Factors (Was there an acute event in this student’s past?)	Medical illness or injury Use of alcohol or drugs	Conflicts around identity (common during transitions such as to post-secondary) Psychological distress/ disorder	Changes to relationships Recent immigration Loss of home
Perpetuating Factors (What chronic things are going on which might affect learning?)	Chronic illness Cognitive deficits, or learning disorder Adjustment of medication Ongoing substance use	Beliefs about self/others/the world Self-destructive behaviours Poor coping Personality traits	Loss of social support Ongoing transitions Food insecurity Working too many hours at part-time job Isolation Unsafe environment
Protective Factors (What is protecting them and allowing them to learn well?)	Overall health Intelligence Abilities Resiliency Popularity	Positive sense of self Good coping skills Self-awareness	Positive familial relationships Availability of supportive social network Financial support

Seeing the Whole Student

As educators, we can apply the biopsychosocial model in our learning environments through how we engage with and respond to our students. If we engage with our students from a “whole human” perspective, we can not only better manage our personal biases (in an ongoing way), but we can also model this approach for our students to apply in their respective lives.

As an example of how faculty might apply the biopsychosocial model, consider a fictional student who repeatedly requests evaluation extensions. Understandably, this can be frustrating for the professor. It is likely that the student would have provided us with their “precipitating factors” resulting in their need for an extension, but we may not be privy to the longstanding, predisposing, or perpetuating factors that are impacting the student. While the student is not required to disclose this information, and we, as educators, are not required to grant an extension, we can better support students in their learning if we take a step back to consider these additional factors which could be contributing to our student’s struggles. In this way, we may be better able to support the diverse needs of this and other students while also mitigating our own frustration. Planning our courses a priori with the many factors outlined in the biopsychosocial model can help.

Similarly, by designing a course which provides all students choices for assessments, which is in line with the recommendations of universal design for learning (CAST, 2018), students may be able to demonstrate the same learning outcomes in a format which takes into account their whole life context. For example, students who don’t have their own computer at home, or who live in a low-income neighbourhood, might prefer to demonstrate their knowledge by writing a test rather than completing a digital project or group assignment. In both of these examples, the idea promoted by the biopsychosocial model is that it may facilitate open dialogue with the student, referral to on campus supports, and a supportive response that promotes genuine student-teacher engagement. In this way, seeing the whole student begins when designing the course and continues throughout the semester.

Fostering Student Application of the Biopsychosocial Model

In forty years since its inception, the biopsychosocial model has been thoroughly researched in the healthcare field (see Fava & Sonino, 2017) and has made its way into the classroom. In social science and humanities classrooms, the pedagogical application of this model is a little more obvious because it more easily connects to the content of the course. For example, educating future clinicians to look at the “whole human” (including biological, psychological, social, and cultural aspects) can be taught through various methods of self-reflection, having the student engage with their own biopsychosocial development, or by applying (individually or in groups) this model to an imagined client scenario.

In other disciplines, the application of the biopsychosocial model may be less obvious but valuable nonetheless, especially since many fields are experiencing a shift toward giving more space and importance to equity, diversity and inclusion practices. For example, Flynn et al. (2022) recently identified a paradigm shift in the field of occupational health and safety toward the biopsychosocial model. This paradigm shift is intended to advance “health equity” because the social determinants of health intersect with other social structures which have ultimately led to exclusionary practices in work environments, research findings, and more (Flynn et al., 2022). Flynn et al. (2022) also highlight the importance of using this model to better understand one’s position within the “complex social web” in which we exist. And, perhaps more prudently, this model can help with our awareness of our own perspective of the world which, if left unattended, can lead to reflexive thoughts and behaviours as well as innate assumptions or judgements of others.

An example of how this model can be included in the classroom of any discipline would be to create a “case scenario” specific to your course content and have students select one case to analyze (independently, in pairs, or in small groups) from a biopsychosocial perspective. That is, ask students to consider various aspects of the person in the scenario and how those aspects might affect behaviour. For example, would Einstein have come up with the theory of relativity had he not encountered some of the hardships in his life (such as World War II)? Alternatively, students can themselves create the descriptions of people related to their field of study (including all aspects of the model) and exchange with another student to examine. Depending on the specific outcomes for your course, you might consider using a celebrity, criminal, researcher/historical figure in your field, a family member, a client encountered during a co-op placement, or even themselves. Regardless of the figure chosen (or if you provide them with a fictitious description of a person), students should consider the influence or role of various aspects of the biopsychosocial model in determining behaviour. Some aspects that the student might consider could be biological (genetic predisposition, underlying medical issue, certain hereditary mental health disorders), psychological (developmental stage, certain mental health disorders, intelligence, attachment style), social (attitudes, social expectations, education, family values), and/or cultural (religion, economic status, sexual identity, ethnicity/race, trauma/crisis, language). Discussions can be quite engaging, especially as students bring in their own unique and diverse lived experiences. Various disciplines can adapt this activity to meet the needs of their curriculum. For example, in a law course, perhaps describe an accused/known criminal; in a social work course, it could be a client; in a nursing course, a patient; in a business course, an applicant for a job; in a literature course, present a character from a novel; in a math course, it could be a key historical figure. The purpose of the activity is to engage students in considering the “whole human” as it draws on their awareness of barriers, strengths, and struggles from a holistic perspective, and how that can impact various outcomes and behaviours. This type of discussion serves to deepen our awareness of diversity as well as social justice/injustice and can also promote a sense of cohesion in the classroom.

One of the primary benefits of exposing students to the biopsychosocial model in their courses is that they gain some additional skills (e.g., critical thinking skills) and become more familiar with the struggles of others, developing empathy. Thinking about all the variables that make people behave a certain way makes students less likely to defer to stereotypes for any particular group or to commit the fundamental attribution error (whereby erroneously attributing others’ behaviours to internal attributes). Ultimately, students will be equipped with enhanced interpersonal skills from their exposure to this model during the course of their studies.

Linking the Model to Students’ Eventual Workplace

Students attend post-secondary institutions with the goal of earning a credential and gaining employment in their field of study. Their learning journey is the foundation which will allow them to apply the learning outcomes and so-called “soft skills” which they developed during the course of their studies. The biopsychosocial model is about developing a general ability of looking at the “whole human” and the diversity among us which is beneficial regardless of one’s field of study. In business management, for example, an important biopsychosocial application might be equitable hiring practices. In health sciences (e.g., nursing), it may be particularly important to be able to assess and advocate for medical intervention on behalf of a patient, a skill which requires a holistic approach. An employee in the field of data analytics might be working on social science or humanities research projects where it would be advantageous to apply a biopsychosocial perspective in their representation of the research data. In any field, developing the skills and ways of thinking related to principles of diversity, equity and inclusion will place students in a better position to be competitive in the job market and better employees once hired.

A Connection with Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI)

Perez et al’s (2019) research revealed an overall lack of engagement and understanding of equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) among post-secondary departments, and as a result, among students as well. And yet, these constructs are overwhelmingly relevant for a students’ own identity and ultimate success in their personal and professional lives. Barnett (2020) wrote about “leading with meaning” where he qualitatively reviewed 12 empirical articles on equity, diversity and inclusion among higher education institutions in the U.S. He concluded that, while educating students on constructs of equity, diversity and inclusion is a complicated process which is dependent on the context, it is imperative that post-secondary institutions focus not only on the specific content which is taught, but also on how that content is taught. Overall, engagement at all levels, including administrators, educators, and individual student relationships, is critical to truly infuse the practices of inclusion, promote equity, and maintain awareness of diversity. The biopsychosocial model is not the sole solution, but it can definitely aid in a more inclusive pedagogical practice.

Conclusions

As educators, we can lay a foundation for EDI by including the biopsychosocial model when designing and delivering courses. As we engage with each diverse learner, we should practice our own awareness of biological, psychological, and social/cultural influences for that learner, continuing to model inclusion by welcoming all student contributions in the classroom. We can help foster EDI in our students by helping them to engage with the biopsychosocial model in our courses to enhance our students’ learning and develop their thinking in a way that will promote EDI both in the classroom and in the workplace.

The classroom is a powerful space to model skills and foster the application of key concepts, and as educators, we can have a lasting impact on our learners. The biopsychosocial model can be used to help us focus on the diversity of our students, both in our pedagogical practices and in the content and skills we help to develop in them.

References

Barnett, R. M. (2020). Leading with meaning: Why diversity, equity and inclusion matters in US higher education. Perspectives in Education, 38(2), 20–35. https://doi.org/10.18820/2519593X/pie.v38.i2.02

CAST (2018). Universal Design for Learning Guidelines. Center for Applied Special Technology. http://udlguidelines.cast.org

Fava, G. A., & Sonino, N. (2017). From the Lesson of George Engel to Current Knowledge: The Biopsychosocial Model 40 Years Later. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, 86(5), 257–259. https://doi.org/10.1159/000478808

Flynn, M. A., Check, P., Steege, A. L., Sivén, J. M., & Syron, L. N. (2022). Health Equity and a Paradigm Shift in Occupational Safety and Health. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(1), 349–352. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph19010349

Perez, R,. J., Robbins, C. K., Harris, L. W., & Montgomery, C. (2020). Exploring Graduate Students’ Socialization to Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Journal of Diversity in Higher Education, 13(2), 133–145. https://doi.org/10.1037/dhe0000115

PsychDB, Psychiatry DataBase (n.d.). Biopsychosocial model and case formulation. https://www.psychdb.com/teaching/biopsychosocial-case-formulation

Quiros, L., Kay, L., & Montijo. A. (2012). Creating Emotional Safety in the Classroom and in the Field. Reflections: Narratives of Professional Helping, 18(2), 42–47.

Try Telling a Story: Why Instructors Share Personal Stories with Students

Tue, 04 Oct 2022 01:54:07 GMT

Nicole Alea Albada (University of California, Santa Barbara)

One of the most influential papers that I read in graduate school was one by Alan Baddeley (1988) titled, “But, what the hell is it for?” The title, of course, was brave and bold, but so was the content. Baddeley and other cognitive psychologists at the time (e.g., Neisser, 1978) argued for an ecological approach to the study of memory. They argued that memory researchers needed to move outside of the confined parameters of the lab to study memory in people’s everyday ecologies. Doing so would move researchers beyond questions about how the memory system works (i.e., the mechanics of memory) to questions about memory’s real-world usefulness or function. I followed in this tradition as an autobiographical memory researcher asking questions over the years about the functions of remembering and sharing the personal past with others in a variety of ecologies (e.g., lifephase, cultural, and online contexts). In recent years, I have become interested in the functions of remembering and sharing stories of one’s personal past in the classroom ecosystem. Why? Because I noticed that I do it often so it must be serving a purpose.

For example, on the first day of my research methods course, I tell students my life story - that I grew up in Key West, Florida, a small island that is the Southernmost point in the Continental United States; that I come from a family of pharmacists (great-grandfather, dad, sister) but that I took a different path in my academics to study psychology; that I stayed in Florida to earn my PhD at the University of Florida so that I could be close to my extended Cuban family; that I met my husband there and that he and our teenage son are obsessive surfers so I spend most of my free time at the beach; that we lived on the Caribbean island of Trinidad and Tobago for over ten years where I taught research methods and statistics at the University of the West Indies before coming to teach them at the University of California Santa Barbara.

I am not the only instructor that seems to share personal stories, like the one above, with their students. It is quite common. For instance, a survey conducted by Houska and colleagues (2015) of 100 university psychology professors found that 91% of teachers reported using stories at least occasionally over the last five years of teaching and, of those, 89% were informal personal stories or brief self-disclosures. Why might personal story sharing be so commonplace? My proposition, from a functional approach, is that it must be serving some purpose in the context of the classroom and instructional ecology. What might these functions be?

Teaching and Learning Function of Personal Stories

The scholarship of teaching and learning literature is peppered with many and diverse suggestions about the reasons why instructors share personal stories with students (e.g., Brakke & Houska, 2015). Perhaps the most common suggestion, which matches well with the objectives of our profession, is that instructors’ personal stories are shared with students to help them better learn and retain information. For instance, the instructors in the Houska and colleague’s (2015) survey said that they tell stories because it helps the course material “come to life for students” and as such “stories are what students remember” (p. 22). Landrum and colleagues (2019) also home in on the power of stories to help students learn and retain information. They reviewed work which indicates that stories pull students into material for deeper learning because stories are interesting, feel relevant, and are in a form (narrative) that is familiar and easily accessible for students.

We have found similar evidence for what we have coined as the teaching and learning function of personal stories in our own correlational work (Alea & Osfeld, 2022). We surveyed student’s perceptions of my use of personal stories when teaching research methods for psychology. Students reported that the stories that I shared with them - like those about my husband’s very-distant fourth-place finish in a swim race to demonstrate ordinal scale of measurement, or the time when I was an undergraduate research assistant and caught an older adult writing down a list of vocabulary words that he did not know so that he would get them correct on the next assessment as an example of a (blatant) practice effect - helped them to better understand the material from “quite a bit” to “very much.” Students openly expressed that the stories were helping them learn, with comments like: “She would talk about example[s] related to her son that helped [me] remember experiment designs” and “I liked all the examples [personal stories] because they showed how to apply the topics we were learning in class to real life situations, and it made conceptual topics more concrete and understandable.” Thus, evidence from correlational and anecdotal studies, and from both instructors’ and students’ perspectives seems to suggest that instructor’s personal stories have the power to serve a teaching and learning function.

Socioemotional Functions of Personal Stories

Personal stories also seem to have the power to serve other non-academically oriented, but I would argue, equally important functions for students. For example, through the snippet of my life story shared above, I am hoping that students infer that: I come from a small town but made it to a big university; that I value diversity and other cultures, that family is important to me, that it is okay to take your own path and diverge from expectations, and that they should feel confident in me teaching their course because of my experiences. I could have just told my students all of this, but instead I tell them through story, believing that it speaks volumes. Sharing this personal story with my students is not teaching them more about the content of research methods, so it is not serving a teaching and learning function, but is likely serving other socioemotional functions that are relevant to a student’s experience as they navigate courses and university.

To better understand and systematically delineate what these socioemotional functions of personal stories in the instructional context might be, we have developed the Personal Stories in Teaching (PST) Survey (Alea, Adams, & Mohiuddin, 2022). The items for the survey were constructed by pulling ideas from the teaching and learning (e.g., Brakke & Houska, 2015) and autobiographical memory functions literature (e.g., Bluck & Alea, 2011), as well as by asking expert university instructors why they share personal stories with their students. Factor analysis indicated that in addition to the teaching and learning function of personal stories, instructors were telling students about their personal experiences in order to serve four other specific functions:

● The social bonding function, which involves instructors sharing personal stories with students to create connections, by letting them know more about us and the ways that we may be similar to them, and in doing so creating an overall more positive and communal learning environment.

● The directive function, which involves instructors sharing personal stories with students about accomplishments and missteps that we have had, in an effort to help direct students’ pathways.

● The empathic function, which involves instructors sharing personal stories with students to help them feel better when they have not succeeded at something and to provide reassurance that will help students to grow in emotional ways.

● The identity function, which involves instructors sharing personal stories with students as a way to encourage them to explore other cultures and perspectives as a means to promote further self-exploration and understanding.

Incorporating Personal Stories into Instruction

I would very much like to end this post with strong evidence-based suggestions for how to implement personal stories when teaching so that they are functional for students. I would like to provide suggestions for, for example: How long should the stories be? How personal should they be? When in a lecture, beginning or end, might a personal story best serve a teaching and learning function? Are personal stories always functional? This, after all, seems to be what instructors want. In 2014 - almost a decade ago now - there was a call from the Society for Teaching of Psychology’s Story Task Force to provide evidence about the efficacy of stories as an instructional tool and a set of guidelines for how to best use stories when teaching. The culmination of this call to action was a free edited book, Telling Stories: The Art and Science of Storytelling as an Instructional Strategy (Brakke & Houska, 2015). The book, and work that followed, is full of instructors’ ideas for how they use stories in their own courses and quasi-experimental studies conducted in classes about the efficacy of personal stories for teaching.

I have been thinking recently, however, that it might be time to bring some of the work exploring the functional outcomes of personal stories in the classroom back into lab-based settings so that variables - like content, timing, and outcomes - can be better controlled. This is hard for me to suggest, given my theoretical foundation in the ecological memory movement. However, I feel compelled to do so because two recent, separate lab-based studies (Alea & Osfeld, 2022; Kromka & Goodboy, 2019), with similar well-controlled methodology, in which lecture content was delivered with and without a personal story, showed little to no improvement for student learning when a personal story was included. The reasons for not finding evidence to support a teaching and learning function of personal stories are many: perhaps the story manipulation was too weak, or in the wrong location in the lecture to be effective, or perhaps a one-time lecture presentation with a single personal story does not mimic well the story sharing experience that occurs in the context of a classroom during the course of an entire term in which socioemotional functions of personal stories are also playing a part in learning. These are all questions that remain to be answered, and a nuanced approach with lab-based and in situ research designs are needed. The end result will give us the full story of the functions of personal stories in instruction.

References

Alea, N., Adams, P., & Mohiuddin, H. (October 2022). The Personal Stories in Teaching (PST) Survey: Exploring why instructors share personal stories with students. Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s 21st Annual Conference on Teaching, Pittsburgh, PA, USA.

Alea, N. & Osfeld, M. (2022). The teaching and learning function of personal stories: Correlational and experimental evidence. Teaching of Psychology, Online first, 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1177/00986283221081008

Baddeley, A. (1988). But what the hell is it for?. In M. M. Gruneberg, P. E. Morris, & R. N. Sykes (Eds.), Practical aspects of memory: Current research and issues (pp. 3–18). Wiley.

Bluck, S., & Alea, N. (2011). Crafting the TALE: Construction of a measure to assess the functions of autobiographical remembering. Memory, 19(5), 470–486. https://doi.org/10.1080/

Brakke, K., & Houska, J. A. (2015). Telling stories: The art and science of storytelling as an instructional strategy. Society for the Teaching of Psychology. https://www.teachpsych.org/

ebooks/tellingstories.html

Houska, J. A., Brakke, K., Kinslow, S. L., Zhao, X., Campbell, B., & Clinton, A ( (2015). The use of story among teachers of psychology. In K. Brakke, & J. A. Houska (Eds.), Telling stories: The art and science of storytelling as an instructional strategy (pp. 14–26). Society for the Teaching of Psychology. https://www.teachpsych.org/ebooks/tellingstories.html

Kromka, S. M., & Goodboy, A. K. (2019). Classroom storytelling: using instructor narratives to increase student recall, affect, and attention, Communication Education, 68(1), 20-43, https://doi.org/10.1080/03634523.2018.1529330

Landrum, R. E., Brakke, K., & McCarthy, M. A. (2019). The pedagogical power of

storytelling. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 5(3), 247–253.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/stl0000152

Neisser, U. (1978). Memory: What are the important questions? In M. M. Gruneberg, P. Morris, & R. H. Sykes (Eds.), Practical aspects of memory (pp. 3–24). Academic Press.

Asking the Right Questions: Using Peer Instruction to Facilitate Learning in Research Methods

Mon, 15 Aug 2022 21:37:44 GMT

Emma H. Geller (University of California, San Diego)

On the first day of my required undergraduate research methods course, I tell students that I think of my role in the classroom as being a “coach.” I ask them: when you go to a practice or a rehearsal, what do you expect to do? What do you expect your coach to do? How is that different from what you might typically expect in a lecture hall? One big difference, I tell them, is that a coach does not simply tell you how to play the game; instead, they provide you lots of opportunities to practice skills in action. Sometimes you will do drills in isolation that you never use during an actual game (like singing scales or dribbling with two hands at once), and sometimes you will have a dress rehearsal or a scrimmage that’s meant to be as similar as possible to the full show or “big game” you are working towards. But you would never expect to sit silently at practice and become the world’s best basketball player or musician or actress. Similarly, you should not expect to be able to sit silently in my classroom and become an expert in research design and critical thinking about research methods: you’ve got to practice those skills to get good at them!

The primary tool I use to help students practice thinking skills in my class is a technique called Peer Instruction. Peer Instruction is an instructional routine for engaging students with challenging conceptual material by explaining to their peers. This technique was created in the 1990s by Eric Mazur, a physics instructor at Harvard, who noticed that students struggled to understand and apply the concepts he taught in lecture, despite feedback that his teaching was clear and easy to follow. I happened to experience Peer Instruction as an undergraduate in a physics course, and that experience has shaped both my research interests and teaching habits in the nearly two decades since then. In this essay, I’ll share some of the evidence base behind this practice, as well as the specifics of how I have implemented it in my research methods course.

What is Peer Instruction, and what’s the evidence that it works?

A typical peer instruction routine follows a structured sequence of lecture and discussion (Crouch & Mazur, 2001). First, the instructor lectures for a short period (10-15 minutes) on a specific concept or topic. This is immediately followed by a challenging multiple-choice question called a ConcepTest, which requires students to apply the concept that has just been taught. ConcepTests should not assess simple memory for presented information; rather they should require application and understanding of a concept. Good questions are ones where incorrect answer choices are plausible and/or based on common misunderstandings. Students respond to this ConcepTest individually first. Next, they are prompted to discuss their reasoning with peers sitting near them. This discussion should focus on why the student chose the answer they did and on resolving disagreement if different students provided different answers. After discussion with peers, students then answer the ConcepTest again. Often, this process includes class wide discussion facilitated by the instructor before revealing the correct answer and addressing any remaining questions or confusions before moving on to the next topic.

In the last two decades, much research has suggested that students greatly benefit from this technique. There is strong evidence, for example, that Peer Instruction improves understanding of the specific ConcepTest posed in class (Crouch & Mazur, 2001), as well as performance on isomorphic questions that test the same concept in a new question (Smith et al., 2009). In fact, students learn just as much from peer discussion as they do from instructor explanations, and that the combination of peer discussion followed by instructor explanation is particularly beneficial (Smith et al., 2011). Perhaps most convincingly, this effect holds for both strong and weak students in the same class, and suggests that the strongest students benefit from the peer discussion phase much more than from the instructor explanation phase (Smith et al., 2011). While much of the early research on Peer Instruction comes from courses in physics, more recent work has seen the use of peer instruction expanded to many domains, especially sciences such as biology, chemistry, and psychology.

Schell and Butler (2018) recently reviewed common modifications to the peer instruction routine and how findings from the science of learning (such as the effectiveness of retrieval, repetition, spacing, and feedback) inform the effectiveness of these modifications. Their recommendations highlight the importance of the peer discussion phase of the cycle as critical to effective learning. In line with this, one recent study found that students did not merely rely on their discussion partners’ confidence, but that peer discussion helped students develop and test more coherent explanations for their answers (Tullis & Goldstone, 2020). This recent evidence suggests that Peer Instruction is both flexible and powerful as a way of engaging students in explanatory processes that promote deeper and longer-lasting learning.

How I use Peer Instruction in my Research Methods course

During class, I generally follow the typical peer instruction routine of lecturing on a topic for roughly 10-15 minutes, followed by a related ConcepTest. Each peer instruction question takes roughly 5-8 minutes of class time; students have ~1 minute to respond individually, ~2 minutes to discuss their thinking with a neighbor, and we spend 2-5 minutes discussing all the answer options (and students’ reasoning) as a class. This means that a 50-minute lecture period typically contains 2-4 peer instruction cycles, and an 80-minute lecture period generally contains 3-5 cycles.

The questions I pose are intended to help students grapple with the most challenging and most frequently misunderstood concepts in class. For example, one of my most consistently effective questions occurs in the lecture when we cover types and scales of measurement. The question describes a researcher who measures memory by asking participants to study a list of words and then write down all of the words they can remember. Students are then asked to decide whether the number of words recalled is a self-report, behavioral, or physiological measure. Without fail, a majority of the class incorrectly believes this is a self-report measure, and we have a lively discussion about the distinction between self-report and behavioral measures, including how we might change the measure to make it a different type and why the differences between types of measures matters for psychological research. Asking students to grapple with this distinction in a concrete way helps them develop a much better grasp of the concept and then apply their understanding to novel questions about measurement types later in the course. Had I simply listed some examples of common behavioral measures, they might have memorized that list but never really understood the concept or why it matters.

How Peer Instruction fits into my grading scheme

Students complete peer instruction questions for participation credit, which means they are required to answer the questions, but they are not penalized for choosing wrong answers. In fact, I repeat frequently that the point of Peer Instruction is to discuss wrong answers, and that I am most interested in hearing from students who are unsure of their answer or torn between multiple options. Participation in Peer Instruction accounts for 10% of students’ overall grade in the course, and it is meant to balance an equivalent percentage of their grade that comes from weekly quizzes where the style of question is the same but accuracy counts.

I have used different systems for tracking Peer Instruction participation over the last 6 years, particularly as remote instruction during Covid reshaped the way students participate in class. In the pre-Covid years, I preferred the use of an in-class response system, much like iClickers, which allowed me to see student responses in real time. Students earned peer instruction credit for each lecture by answering at least half of the questions posed that day. This allowed some flexibility if students arrived late or needed to leave early, but generally resulted in attendance rates around 90% throughout the term.

During remote instruction, our courses were held over Zoom but we could not require synchronous attendance, so this kind of in-class response system was not feasible. Students who attended class synchronously (either in person or on Zoom) were still able to discuss the peer instruction questions with classmates during class, but any student watching a recording of class would miss out on this part of the cycle. To mitigate the lack of discussion and explanation with peers, I created separate assignments for each lecture in our LMS that prompted all students to write brief explanations of their own reasoning for each question. In these Canvas assignments, each ConcepTest from class was followed by the open ended prompt: “Explain your reasoning for the previous question. How did you pick your answer? Is anything still confusing or unclear about this question or topic?” Using the “graded survey” option in Canvas (a standard option under the Quiz menu), students were awarded students points for submitting the assignment without requiring correct answers. These assignments were graded automatically, and I allowed half credit for late submissions. In the last two years, these deadlines have sometimes been at the end of the week (e.g. all assignments due by Sunday night), by the next class period, or by the end of the class period, depending on the expectations for flexibility and synchronous attendance in any given term.

How the rest of the course builds on Peer Instruction

My biggest pitch to students about the value of peer instruction is that it prepares them to succeed at higher-stakes assignments in my course. A specific goal in my course is to help students feel comfortable reading and evaluating published research in psychology. To that end, students are required to read an assigned article each week and take a quiz on the methods described in the paper. The weekly quiz targets the same topics that were addressed in Peer Instruction questions that week. For example, in the week when we discuss the types of measurement question I described above, I warn students: “I will ask you exactly this kind of question about the article you are reading this week. So while you are reading, I want you to pay attention to how the variables are measured and ask yourself what type of measure it is!” These quizzes are cumulative in the sense that concepts from the earliest weeks in the course are repeated on quizzes in later weeks, so that students are revisit the same concepts in new contexts each week.

My exams follow the same format as my weekly quizzes and (by extension) the peer instruction assignments. Students read a brief paragraph summarizing a study and then answer a series of questions about the methods of the study. The beauty of this system is that I can ask essentially the same questions over and over – “What is the independent variable? How many levels does it have, and was it manipulated within or between subjects? What is the dependent variable? What type and scale of measurement best describe it?” etc. – and students have already practiced this type of thinking in class. Generating new questions for quizzes and exams is only a matter of choosing new articles to read or writing new scenarios to evaluate! Every new article adds to my bank of scenarios and questions that can be re-used in future terms.

This ecosystem of questions and assessments helps reinforce the idea that we are developing the skills associated with understanding and evaluating research methods by practicing them over and over again in new contexts. When students answer incorrectly in class or on a quiz, they have the chance to discuss and understand their mistakes before they get to the exam!

How students feel about Peer Instruction

I have been using Peer Instruction in my required, lower-division research methods course for the last 6 years, in class sizes ranging from 20 to 220 students, and I can attest that it is one of the most-appreciated components of my course. In 18 iterations of this course (and over 1,400 students), more than 80% of students reporting that they “liked” or “loved” the peer instruction assignments (a rating of 4 or 5 on a 1-5 scale), and over 90% reported that they learned “some” or “a lot” from them (a rating of 3 or 4 on a 1-4 scale). This pattern has held for both in-person and remote versions of the course, in spite of changes (and challenges) to implementing peer instruction online. More than a third of students have spontaneously identified peer instruction as their favorite part of the research methods course.

It is rare to find an instructional technique that is both well-supported by research evidence and also well-liked by students! Peer Instruction has played a huge role in making my course engaging and effective for the psychology majors at UC San Diego. I would be happy to share thoughts and materials with any instructors looking to do the same for their courses!

References

Crouch, C. H., & Mazur, E. (2001). Peer instruction: Ten years of experience and results. American Journal of Physics, 69(9), 970-977.

Schell, J. A., & Butler, A. C. (2018). Insights from the science of learning can inform evidence-based implementation of peer instruction. Frontiers in Education, 3(33), 1-13.

Smith, M. K., Wood, W. B., Adams, W. K., Wieman, C., Knight, J. K., Guild, N., & Su, T. T. (2009). Why peer discussion improves student performance on in-class concept questions. Science, 323 (5910), 122-124.

Smith, M. K., Wood, W. B., Krauter, K., & Knight, J. K. (2011). Combining peer discussion with instructor explanation increases student learning from in-class concept questions. CBE—Life Sciences Education, 10(1), 55-63.

Tullis, J. G., & Goldstone, R. L. (2020). Why does peer instruction benefit student learning? Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications, 5(1), 1-12.

A Toolbox to Enhance Student Resilience and Success

Tue, 12 Jul 2022 16:14:54 GMT

A Toolbox to Enhance Student Resilience and Success

Alisa Beyer (Chandler-Gilbert Community College)

Providing college students with resources in resiliency may play an important role in student success and persistence. Pre-COVID completion rates were less than 30% for 2- year colleges, 62% completion rate for bachelor’s degrees within 6-years from entry (Causey et al, 2022). Going through college can feel like a marathon, yet we strengthen student stamina by building resilience. I wanted to make sure course content builds in not just academic assistance, but holistically helps students get through college and beyond. For this project, I added online modules that target academic resilience and mental health to an introduction to psychology class.

Before sharing more about the modules, I wanted to highlight factors that go into teaching resilience. Davis (1999) identified seven empirically-based factors correlated with resilience: good health and an easy temperament; basic trust in others; interpersonal competence; emotional and cognitive competence (e.g., emotion regulation, executive functioning), social connections, and finding purpose and meaning including moral regard for others. Similar to Davis, Ginsberg (2011) put together the seven C’s of resilience (e.g., confidence, character, connectedness, coping, and control). Aubrey (2020) created Psychological & Emotional Resilience Training (PERT) and a resilience course for college students which included (1) Self-regulation skills for academic, career, and personal success, (2) Mental flexibility/psychological reframing, (3) Use of positive psychological strengths for success (academic, personal, career), (4) Use of interpersonal connections, (5) Self-directed motivation and goal setting, and (6) Self-care and revitalization.

One aspect of resilience building is the role of character strengths in coping with challenging situations (Peterson & Seligman, 2004). Character strengths, defined as positive, morally valued personality traits, connect an individual's self-perception to core values and are known as Values in Action (VIA) (Peterson & Seligman, 2004). Values help foster mental health and well-being and buffer physiological and psychological stress (Schutte & Malouff, 2019; Cresswell et al, 2005). Seligman and colleagues developed 24 values connected to six overarching virtues (e.g., humanity, justice, and wisdom) (Dahlsgaard et al, 2005). Having strong self-resources along with value affirmation reduces the perception of stress (Cresswell et al, 2005; Taylor et al, 2003; Swann et al, 1987). Meta-analysis has shown strength in character values are associated with an increase in happiness, decrease in depression, and life satisfaction (Schutte & Malouff, 2019).

I also wanted to include self-management resources for stress as practical, everyday skills include being able to effectively function to meet the demands of the environment (college and otherwise). Students may bring additional challenges into the classroom, including anxieties about college and an inability to self-regulate. An important self-management skill includes self-regulation coping skills to deal with stress, problem solving and decision making to face the adversities that may appear. When appraising stress, our mind and bodies react, activating the sympathetic nervous system. Experiencing stress can impact our attention, affect, motivation, and physiology (Crum, Handley-Miner, & Smith, 2021). Having a stress-is-enhancing mindset can decrease anxiety and depression, improve performance, and decrease physiological functions associated with stress appraisal (Crun et al, 2013; Crum et al, 2017). In a recent meta-analysis, psychoeducation was the most effective for interventions for mental health literacy and cognitive skills (ps < 0.001; de Pablo et al, 2020). This portion of the lesson teaches students more about the mind, body, and stress and sharing ways they can regulate.

Learning Modules

In building resilience training, I focused on character strengths along with self-management strategies for stress. The modules were intended to build general knowledge and offer students an opportunity for self-discovery. All materials were presented in an asynchronous online modality. I have shared these modules in the Canvas Commons (Beyer, 2022).

The first intervention was strengths-based training adapted from work of Peterson and Seligman (2004) and Dilbeck et al. (2018). Peterson and Seligman (2004) set out to establish a universal framework to describe and measure the strengths. The result was the VIA (Values-In-Action) classification of strengths, a universally valid classification system devised of 24 character strengths. Students who took the VIA survey received individualized feedback and focused on creating images and explaining their top five strengths. They were then asked to use one of these top strengths when faced with a stressor. The learning objective for the module was to identify their top five values after taking a values survey and then reflect on their values in action during a challenging situation.

I include value check-ins throughout the semester. I share with students that many values (except humility) correlate with resilience (Matinez-Marti & Ruch, 2017). Values such as prudence and self-regulation help moderate behavior and emotions which may help buffer the body’s stress response, humor can help with adaptive coping and decrease stress, vitality adds energy, and hope gives a positive outlook (Creswell et al., 2005; Peterson & Seligman, 2004; Martinez-Marti et al., 2021; Ruch & Hofmann, 2017).

Several weeks later, and after learning about the brain and stress, students participated in a mind toolbox. In this module, students learned about resilience, stress and the brain, and then were given three challenges. The lesson included videos on building resilience, controlling behavior and connecting the brain systems, and anxiety and the brain. These videos were from YouTube (e.g., Doris & Masters, 2019). The assignment taught students about recognizing and being aware that you are getting upset or stressed along with some techniques for self-regulation (Keng et al, 2016). Students learned about mindful reappraisal and mindful acceptance adapted from Keng et al. Students were given guidance and an opportunity to try these techniques out.

As an aside, I attempted to complete comparisons between sections with these modules and those without adding in pre-post measures connected to stress, wellbeing, and resilience. Unfortunately, of the 220 students, many students did not provide enough data to be matched and the final sample size for the pre-test was 80 (intervention = 29) and 61 for the post-test (intervention = 17). For the pre-test, the intervention group was higher for General Well-being, (t(78) = -2.83, [-5.3, -.92], p = .006, d=.66). The General Well-being scores evened out in the post-test with no significant findings. The only significant finding for the post-test was the Brief Resilience Coping Scale with the intervention group having higher scores (t(59) = -2.09, [-3.55, -.07], p = .04, d=.60). I also compared overall GPA and course grades and there were no significant differences between the intervention and control groups.

Discussion

I encourage colleagues to adapt more interventions into the psychology curriculum and work with your college for all students to learn and benefit from psychology. You know your students best and can share tools for their “toolbox” that relate to psychology content! I have a Well-being Assignment posted in the Canvas Commons as well that offers students different research-based activities to improve their emotional, physical, or cognitive well-being (Beyer et al, 2021). They are short assignments meant to be week-long or less challenges.

This tool became utilized with underrepresented groups as value affirmation reaffirms feelings of self-worth when an individual feels threatened or self-confidence is challenged, with the idea that participants self-esteem is raised while reaffirming personal values (Sherman & Cohen, 2006; Steele & Liu, 1983). However, it is important to note that findings are mixed for underrepresented groups. Students who face identity threat may fail to see improvements and this research is complex (Yeager & Walton, 2011).

You have the flexibility to tie in life skills that connect to course content. Emotional intelligence education and training could be another resilience intervention possibility (Morales, 2000; 2008). Last year, I discovered an excellent resource, the Handbook of Wise Interventions (Walton & Crum, 2021). Some other ideas for successful interventions for students include growth mindset (see Dweck & Yeager, 2021 for activities and review) and self-affirmations (Steele, 1988; Sherman, Lokhande, Muller, & Cohen, 2021). Sherman and colleagues (2021) provide resources for self-affirmation intervention materials in their chapter. Another option could be utility value intervention as reviewed and discussed in Hulleman and Harackiewicz’s chapter (2021).

Although initially unplanned, having an online intervention has its benefits. For example, students had access to the modules 24/7, provided that they had internet coverage and ability to log into the LMS. Students could also access the LMS from phone, tablet, or computer. Students submitted the assignments to the instructor in a confidential format. With the ability for students to have some selection over activities, this gives them a sense of autonomy as well. Having an online option allows for more access to students and adaptability for different institutional needs. I recently learned about the Mastery Based path in Canvas that allows you to create a quiz about their habits and skills and then provides only content they need based on scoring. Mastery path could be a way for the student to feel that it was individualized for them and their needs. I have ambitions to create this set up filled with information from the course as a wrap up activity for skills they (hopefully) acquired (and if not, they are at least re-introduced to the resources).

I realize that the skills shared, and many connected to psychology content, benefit all students. You might gather a college-wide opt in that helps all college students strengthen their skills. While this is more of a grassroots effort, there are curriculum-based resilience programs out there like EmpowerU (https://www.empoweru.org/) and SCoRE (Student Curriculum on Resilience Education (www.scoreforcollege.org) that are designed to helps students cope with personal, social, and academic challenges. Colleges such as University of Toronto and Florida State University have also adopted college-wide efforts to promote resilience. All of these efforts are designed to increase student self-efficacy and academic performance for student success.

References

Aubrey, T. (2020). The Resilient Learner Thriving and Succeeding in College. Human Resources.

Beyer, A. (2022).CG Sharing Psychology for Student Success. Canvas Commons.

Beyer, A., Mclaughlin, S., Moore, E. (2021). Maricopa UN SDR#3 Open Well-Being Project. Canvas Commons.

Causey, J., Pevitz, A., Ryu, M., Scheetz, A., & Shapiro, D. (Feb 2022), Completing College: National and State Report on SixYear Completion Rates for Fall 2015 Beginning Cohort (Signature Report 20), Herndon, VA: National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

Creswell, J. D., Welch, W. T., Taylor, S. E., Sherman, D. K., Gruenewald, T. L., & Mann, T. (2005). Affirmation of personal values buffers neuroendocrine and psychological stress responses. Psychological science, 16(11), 846-851.

Crum, A. J., Akinola, M., Martin, A., & Fath, S. (2017). The role of stress mindset in shaping cognitive, emotional, and physiological responses to challenging and threatening stress. Anxiety, stress, & coping, 30(4), 379-395.

Crum, A., Salovey, P. & Achor, S. (2013). Rethinking Stress: The Role of Mindsets in Determining the Stress Response. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.

Dahlsgaard, K., Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. (2005). Shared virtue: The convergence of valued human strengths across culture and history. Review of general psychology, 9(3), 203-213.

Davis, N.J. (1999). Resilience: Status of research and research‐based programs. Working paper, Center for Mental Health Services, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Rockville, MD.

de Pablo, G.S., De Micheli, A., Solmi, M., Oliver, D., Catalan, A., Verdino, V., Di Maggio, L., Bonoldi, I., Radua, J., Baccaredda Boy, O., Provenzani, U., Ruzzi, F., Calorio, F., Nosari, G., Di Marco, B., Famularo, I., Montealegre, I., Signorini, L., Molteni, S., Filosi, E., Mensi, M., Balottin, U., Politi, P., Shin, J., Correll, C., Arango, C., Fusar-Poli, P (2021). Universal and Selective Interventions to Prevent Poor Mental Health Outcomes in Young People: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis, Harvard Review of Psychiatry, 29 (3), 196-215 doi: 10.1097/HRP.0000000000000294

Dilbeck, Reed, Welle, & Ernst (2018). Lesson Plan VIA: Character Strengths Teaching Resources for High School Psychology Teachers on Skills, https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/topss/teaching-resources/character-strengths-lesson

Dorn, K. & Masters, A. (2019). Attend & Manage. https://youtu.be/syNL2vuIdJw

Dwek, C.S. & Yeager, D. W. (2021).A Growth Mindset about Intelligence. In G.M. Walton & A.J. Crum (Eds.), Handbook of Wise Interventions: How Social Psychology Can Help People Change. The Guilford Press.

Ginsberg, K. (2011). The 7 C’s: The essential building blocks of resilience. Retrieved from http://www.fosteringresilience.com/professionals/7cs_professionals.php

Hulleman, C.S. & Harackiewicz, J.M. (2021). The Utility-Value Intervention. In G.M. Walton & A.J. Crum (Eds.), Handbook of Wise Interventions: How Social Psychology Can Help People Change. The Guilford Press.

Juszkiewicz, J. (2020). Trends in community college enrollment and completion data, Issue 6. American Association of Community Colleges.

Keng, S. L., Smoski, M. J., & Robins, C. J. (2016). Effects of mindful acceptance and reappraisal training on maladaptive beliefs about rumination. Mindfulness, 7(2), 493-503.

Martínez-Martí, M. L., & Ruch, W. (2017). Character strengths predict resilience over and above positive affect, self-efficacy, optimism, social support, self-esteem, and life satisfaction. The Journal of Positive Psychology, 12(2), 110-119.

Martínez-Martí, M. L., Theirs, C. I., Pascual, D., & Corradi, G. (2020). Character strengths predict an increase in mental health and subjective well-being over a one-month period during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. Frontiers in psychology, 11, 2790.

Mahfouz,J, Levitan, J, Schussler, D., Broderick, T, Dvorakova, K, Argos, M, * Greenberg, M (2018). Ensuring College Student Success Through Mindfulness-Based Classes: Just Breathe. The College Student Affairs Journal, 36(1), 1–16. https://doi.org/10.1353/csj.2018.0000

Morales, E. (2000). A contextual understanding of the process of educational resilience. Innovative Higher Education, 25(1) 7-22

Morales, E. E. (2008). A focus on hope: Toward a more comprehensive theory of academic resiliency among at-risk minority students. The Journal of At-Risk Issues, 14(1), 23-32.

Peterson, C., & Seligman, M. E. P. (2004). Character strengths and virtues: A handbook and classification. New York: Oxford University Press and Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

Ruch, W., and Hofmann, J. (2017). “Fostering humor,” in Positive Psychology Interventions in Practice, ed. C. Proctor (New York: Springer), 65–80.

Schutte, N. S., & Malouff, J. M. (2019). The impact of signature character strengths interventions: A meta-analysis. Journal of Happiness Studies, 20(4), 1179-1196.

Seligman, M. E. P., Steen, T. A., Park, N., & Peterson, C. (2005). Positive psychology progress: Empirical validation of interventions. American Psychologist, 60(5), 410-421. doi:http://dx.doi.org.dom.idm.oclc.org/10.1037/0003-066X.60.5.410

Seligman, M. E., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2014). Positive psychology: An introduction. In Flow and the foundations of positive psychology (pp. 279-298). Springer, Dordrecht.

Sherman, D. K., & Cohen, G. L. (2006). The psychology of self‐defense: Self‐affirmation theory. Advances in experimental social psychology, 38, 183-242.

Sherman, D.K., Lokhande, M., & Cohen, G.L. (2021). Self-Affirmation Interventions. In G.M. Walton & A.J. Crum (Eds.), Handbook of Wise Interventions: How Social Psychology Can Help People Change. The Guilford Press.

Steele, C. M. (1988). The psychology of self-affirmation: Sustaining the integrity of the self. In Advances in experimental social psychology (Vol. 21, pp. 261-302). Academic Press.

Walton, G. M., & Crum, A. J. (Eds.). (2020). Handbook of wise interventions. Guilford Publications.

Yeager, D.S., & Walton, G.M. (2011). Social-psychological interventions in education: They’re not magic. Review of Educational Research, 81(2), 267–301. doi:10.3102/0034654311405999

How Faculty Kept Students Engaged During the Covid-19 Pandemic

Tue, 05 Jul 2022 18:13:40 GMT

Jacquelyn Raftery-Helmer, Kathryn Frazier, Nicole Rosa, Colleen Sullivan (Worcester State University)

The COVID-19 pandemic presented unrelenting challenges for faculty who, for the past two years, have worked tirelessly to help support their students in the context of their deteriorating academic performance, academic engagement and mental health (World Health Organization, 2020). As many institutions shifted to an online or remote learning format in the spring of 2020, a prominent challenge associated with that transition– and one that has persisted in the wake of prolonged remote learning, hybrid learning and the attempt to “return to normal” on many campuses– was the steep decline in students’ academic engagement and motivation (Gonzalez-Ramirez et al., 2021; Marler et al., 2021; Usher et al., 2021). While engagement and motivation have long been of interest to faculty (Reeve, 2012), the unprecedented external distractions and stressors presented by the pandemic have created new obstacles and challenges for both faculty and students.

Four instructors at Worcester State University, Kathryn Frazier, Jacquelyn Raftery-Helmer, Nicole Rosa, and Colleen Sullivan, surveyed students during the height of the pandemic to better understand what faculty could do to help students stay intrinsically motivated and engaged, despite the ongoing challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic created (Raftery-Helmer et al., 2020).

The researchers focused on intrinsic motivation---engaging in academic work because it is fun, interesting, enjoyable, and provides inherent satisfaction—because intrinsic motivation is the most robust type of motivation in that it comes from within. Intrinsic motivation has been associated with a range of positive academic outcomes (Ryan & Deci, 2000). For instance, Azila-Gbettor and colleagues (2021) found that students who were intrinsically motivated had lower levels of anxiety, higher perceptions of competence, and greater engagement in learning compared to students not intrinsically motivated. On the other hand, students with low intrinsic motivation have shown less interest in exploration and learning and a decreased commitment to their coursework. The Worcester State researchers found that the single strongest predictor of intrinsic motivation in class was whether or not students felt competent. This is consistent with a plethora of research showing that during times of stress (Grolnick et al., 2018), facilitating competence (Grolnick et al., 2014) is important for helping people feel in control of outcomes when everything else feels out of control, which may have been particularly important during the pandemic when many reported feeling little control over outside forces (Misamer, et al, 2021).

But how do instructors help students to feel competent in the classroom?

Here are several specific strategies, informed by this work, that were found to help students feel a sense of control and competence during this unprecedented time.

1. Set clear and consistent expectations

When expectations in the classroom are clear and consistently implemented, students have a better understanding of how their behavior is connected to classroom outcomes. Instructors might consider including specific language in their syllabus and course materials regarding their expectations for student participation, late work, and academic honesty. It can also be really helpful to provide students with a detailed course schedule that includes all upcoming readings and assignments. Having very clear policies and deadlines articulated upfront allows students to plan their academic behavior accordingly.

2. Provide predictable consequences when students don’t meet standards

It is really important for students to have a very clear sense of how points are earned in a class and under what circumstances they will experience grade deductions. One way of doing this could be to provide thorough rubrics articulating how students can earn (or lose!) assignment points. These rubrics should be as detailed as possible so that there is no guesswork for students trying to figure out how their work will be evaluated.

3. Provide continuous feedback

Students benefit from ongoing feedback in their classes. One way of doing this is to create a number of “low-stakes” assignments. These assignments create opportunities for students to examine their own understanding of essential course concepts and receive immediate feedback, without penalizing students for mistakes or errors they may make as part of the learning process. It can also be really helpful for students to have iterative writing assignments with built-in opportunities for specific, constructive, and thoughtful feedback. For instance, one way to do this would be to provide students feedback about their paper topic, prior to conducting a thorough literature review, and then specific (line by line, if needed!) feedback about how students have synthesized the literature before a final draft is due.

It may not be surprising to learn that many of the pedagogical techniques that worked so well to foster competence, and therefore intrinsic motivation, among students during a COVID-19 semester are those that tap into the principles of trauma-informed teaching. While trauma-informed pedagogy has traditionally been relevant for supporting students who enter college with a trauma history, psychologists and others have discussed the COVID-19 pandemic and its effects as a sort of collective trauma, in reference to its toll on physical and emotional well-being. Trauma-informed pedagogies emphasize a number of principles, several of which mirror the goals of competence-supportive behaviors, including transparency, trustworthiness and empowerment (Harper & Neubauer, 2020).

Interestingly, Drs. Frazier, Raftery-Helmer, Rosa, and Sullivan found a different pattern of results when looking at student’s intrinsic motivation for college more generally– that is, what led students to associate internal value and enjoyment with their experience of, and intention to persist at, their college. Whether students felt connected to others, specifically faculty and other students in their class, was the only predictor of their general college intrinsic motivation. This finding was particularly meaningful in that it suggests that relationship building in the classroom is not taking away from students’ learning but is an essential ingredient for fostering student’s high-quality motivation. To create more connection in the classroom, instructors may consider doing the following:

1. Get to know your students

One of the best ways to help students feel connected is to take a real interest in your students. There are lots of ways to do this but one helpful strategy is to ask students on the first day of class why they enrolled in the course and what they were hoping to learn so that you may be able to incorporate their interests into the class. Brief surveys can provide interesting insight into your students’ lives in and out of the classroom that may help you to form connections throughout the semester. This also helps to send the message early on in the semester that you are interested in who your students are as individuals and see them as more than a name on a roster.

2. Make yourself available

While many faculty are required to hold office hours, it can be really helpful to frame for students what these office hours are for and to find creative ways to encourage students to attend. For instance, some faculty have had great success after sending personal “invitations” to office hours. One way to do this might be to reach out to students that appear to be struggling on assignments and ask them whether they would like to review material and discuss what resources they might need to succeed. It can be helpful to hold “themed” office hours. For instance, some instructors have advertised bonus office hours aimed at providing students with additional information about graduate school or employment avenues. Any way that you can connect with students and communicate to them that you are a resource and that you value them will pay dividends for their motivation!

3. Create opportunities for peer-to-peer interaction

While connection to faculty is important, so is creating a climate in which students feel connected to and valued by their peers. It’s important for faculty to create space for students to talk about their ideas, share their work, and engage in learning alongside and with others. Classroom activities based in active learning present students with the opportunity to test and apply their understanding of course material while also developing relationships with their classmates. Peer review assignments, structured group work, and other collaborative learning opportunities would also serve this goal well.

Despite the practical, emotional and physical challenges associated with pandemic learning, the shift to remote instruction, and the rippling consequences on students’ well-being, instructors’ behavior in the classroom remains a powerful catalyst for supporting student motivation. This work, and the pandemic, has highlighted the idea that faculty provide so much more than just content in our courses. Supporting instructors’ pedagogical development in a way that promotes competence support and relationship-building is one powerful way to enhance students’ experience and chance of success in the classroom, as well as their overall commitment to and value of their university.

References

Azila-Gbettor, E. M., Mensah, C., Abiemo, M. K., & Bokor, M. (2021). Predicting student engagement from self-efficacy and autonomous motivation: A cross-sectional study. Cogent Education, 8(1), 1942638. https://doi.org/10.1080/2331186x.2021.1942638

Gonzalez-Ramirez, J., Mulqueen, K., Zealand, R., Silverstein, S., Reina, C., BuShell, S., & Ladda, S. (2021). Emergency online learning: College students’ perceptions during the COVID-19 pandemic. College Student Journal, 55(1), 29–46.

Grolnick, W. S., Raftery-Helmer, J. N., Marbell, K. N., Flamm, E. S., Cardemil, E. V., & Sanchez, M. (2014). Parental provision of structure: Implementation and correlates in three domains. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly (1982-), 60(3), 355-384. https://doi.org/10.13110/merrpalmquar1982.60.3.0355

Grolnick, W. S., Schonfeld, D. J., Schreiber, M., Cohen, J., Cole, V., Jaycox, L., Lochman, J., Pfefferbaum, B., Ruggiero, K., Wells, K., Wong, M., & Zatzick, D. (2018). Improving adjustment and resilience in children following a disaster: Addressing research challenges. American Psychologist, 73(3), 215-229. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000181

Harper, G. W., & Neubauer, L. C. (2021). Teaching during a pandemic: A model for trauma-informed education and administration. Pedagogy in health promotion, 7(1), 14-24. https://doi.org/10.1177/2373379920965596

Marler, E. K., Bruce, M. J., Abaoud, A., Henrichsen, C., Suksatan, W., Homvisetvongsa, S., & Matsuo, H. (2021). The impact of covid-19 on university students’ academic motivation, social connection, and psychological well-being. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/stl0000294

Misamer, M., Signerski-Krieger, J., Bartels, C., & Belz, M. (2021). Internal locus of control and sense of coherence decrease during the COVID-19 pandemic: A survey of students and professionals in social work. Frontiers in Sociology, 174. 1-10. https://doi.org/10.3389/fsoc.2021.705809

Raftery-Helmer, J. N., Sullivan, C., Frazier, K., & Rosa, N. (2020, October). Online course motivation and engagement: Understanding semester changes. Paper presented at the Teaching in Psychology Annual Conference on Teaching, Virtual Meeting

Reeve, J. (2012). A self-determination theory perspective on student engagement. In Handbook of research on student engagement (pp. 149-172). Springer, Boston, MA.

Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American psychologist, 55(1), 68. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68

Usher, E. L., Golding, J. M., Han, J., Griffiths, C. S., McGavran, M. B., Brown, C. S., & Sheehan, E. A. (2021). Psychology students’ motivation and learning in response to the shift to remote instruction during COVID-19. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology. https://doi-org.ezproxyworc.helmlib.org/10.1037/stl0000256

World Health Organization. (2020). Mental health and psychosocial considerations during the COVID-19 outbreak, 18 March 2020 (No. WHO/2019-nCoV/MentalHealth/2020.1). World Health Organization.

How psychology teachers can model behaviors to support student learning and wellbeing

Thu, 19 May 2022 17:34:51 GMT

Amanda Cappon & Lynne N. Kennette (Durham College)

In 2020, the global pandemic (emphasis on global) hit the world. Here we are in 2022, still dealing with the global pandemic. Two weeks to flatten the curve has become 2+ years of global uncertainty, which has necessarily found its way into our classrooms. The role of teaching has changed for us all and has involved numerous instances of pivoting. But the reality is, people prefer routine and predictability; we find comfort in cycles of repetition and being able to plan for the immediate and more distant future. Yet, the pandemic continues to require that we adapt and modify our ways of doing things, because public health orders and institutional policies are constantly changing (and often without much notice). Operating from an internal locus of control can be helpful for both faculty and students because it means successes and failures are rooted in our own abilities rather than these ever-changing external factors (Corey et al., 2018). But that is only part of the solution.

This article seeks to highlight some new (and some perhaps not-so-new) strategies you can model to support student learning and wellbeing while teaching online (though many of our suggestions will also apply to in-person learning). Additionally, we will consider how uncertainty can impact teaching and learning.

Embrace Interruptions

Can you relate to the following? Your three-year old is home from daycare due to a runny nose. You have a 2-hour live class. You set your kid up with snacks and stream a show that you hope will keep their attention long enough for you to teach your class. But, 15 minutes into class, your kid interjects. “I have to poop!” Loudly.

While technology provides us with excellent options for managing self-disclosure when teaching and learning online (see Kennette & Lin, 2021), there are still inevitable pitfalls which we may sometimes encounter. Instances of children and furry friends appearing on screen are becoming the new norm. An online search for “bloopers in online teaching” will confirm this. Yet, as educators, messages of “classroom management” and of “maintaining professionalism” or “minimizing self-disclosure” can conflict with this new reality. And so, an uncontrollable situation (such as a child requiring toileting assistance during a live class) can throw us into a spiral of self-doubt with self-effacing emotions and anxiety. If we take an external locus of control perspective where the situation controls us (see Wang, Bowling & Eschleman, 2010), we may find ourselves wondering why this sort of thing always happens to us. But maybe instead, we can reframe this disruption as a teachable moment for our students.

For example, the toileting scenario above is relevant to the developmental chapter which you may have already taught (or may be teaching soon). After all, toilet training is a complex developmental process (de Carvalho Mrad et al., 2021) whereby the child needs to be attuned to their physiological needs and to be able to communicate that they need help in the bathroom. Similarly, discussing our own physiological response to the stressor (i.e., engaging the sympathetic nervous system) can also relate the at-home interruptions to your course content.

These interruptions also provide you with an opportunity to model for students how to cope with unpredictable stressors. For example, you can acknowledge your own sympathetic arousal and then try deep, slow breaths to engage the parasympathetic nervous system. Ultimately, this demonstrates that we all encounter stress and have to find ways to deal with stressors, but also that we can get through it. Students may even appreciate a quick coffee break while you deal with the interruption from your uninvited side-kick!

As another example of embracing online interruptions, you may have furry friends at home who tend to demand your attention the moment you sign on to teach your online class. When a pet appears in your live online class (or even your asynchronous recording) without an invitation, instructors could take advantage of this opportunity to review some classical or operant conditioning concepts and terminology (assuming your pet is conditioned to do something easily demonstrated!). Or perhaps you use the opportunity to model some ways to minimize distractions when they occur such as putting on your headset, or getting closer to the computer to focus your field of vision onto the screen. These at-home interruptions are one of the unique differences we are all experiencing in comparison to the traditional pre-pandemic, in-person classroom. We can choose to panic about these scenarios or embrace them as teachable moments and as opportunities for our students to get to know us a little bit better and to build a stronger rapport (which we know is more challenging in a fully online course).

Include Mindful Moments

Mindfulness has been trending both as a topic of research and in practice in the last decade or so. And for good reason. The notion of being fully present in the moment and “paying attention on purpose” (Williams et al., 2007, p.54) is practically a health requirement these days. Emails, social media notifications, and learning management (LMS) communications are just a few examples of the daily barrage of electronic information that students (and faculty) constantly receive. On top of this, many of us are emotionally and/or cognitively depleted from ongoing decision-making (and revising those decisions as situations change) and from contending with conflicting views on pandemic-related topics such as masking and vaccination. And so, both faculty and students can benefit from the positive psychological and physiological outcomes associated with mindfulness practices (Chiodelli et al., 2000; Zenner et al., 2014). Many teachers at all levels, including K-12 and higher education (Chiodelli et al., 2000; Zenner et al., 2014) have already incorporated mindfulness into their classrooms. But, when educators are faced with external pressures themselves (such as pivoting to emergency online learning), how do they continue to practice/include mindfulness? And more importantly, how can they encourage their students to engage in this wellness practice? Often, self-care and wellness practices are the first to fall off our to-do lists. Here, we share three types of mindfulness practices which can be applied in any teaching context.

Meditation

Dedicating a short, manageable chunk of time (e.g., 1 minute) at the start of your class (face-to-face, live online, or asynchronously) to complete a mindfulness meditation sets the tone for the learning ahead. It models parasympathetic engagement and provides a hands-on experience for students to feel what we mean when we describe the interaction that exists between our biology and our psychology. This is a concrete way for our lessons to become real for students. This practice can also be used in the middle, or at the end of a class to aid in student “digestion” of whatever you are teaching or to break up some heavy material such as a unit on prejudice, stereotypes, and discrimination.

Awareness Through Education

For some faculty, implementing mindful practice may not seem like a natural fit either for themselves or for their class content (e.g., it may not relate to the content as seamlessly in a statistics course). For others, implementing a mindful practice may only be an initial step in this process, with a supplemental step being the addition of a comprehensive course learning outcome requiring their students to also understand the benefits of the practice. We have found that TedTalks are a great option to connect students to the benefits of mindfulness, even if the practice doesn’t directly connect to your course content. Amishi Jha (2017) has an excellent 18-minute TedTalk on taming your wandering mind where she posits that “I think, therefore I am distracted” which demonstrates the importance of understanding that we are all fallible and therefore the need to integrate empathy for ourselves into our practice of mindfulness. This particular TedTalk is especially appropriate for students of psychology because, as a neuroscientist, Jia explains the benefits of mindfulness from this perspective.

Mindful Social Media Breaks

Yup, you read that right- we’re suggesting that you allow breaks so that your students can use social media in the classroom (but in a mindful way). We know that when students- teens and adult learners in particular- are in class, whether online or in person, they are also likely to be logged in to various social media platforms. Since this is the reality, why not roll with it? To embrace the norm of this generation of learners, try the following mindful social media activity. At a point in your lesson when you observe your students to be disconnected from learning, pause whatever you are doing and explain that it’s time for a mindful social media break. Frame this break as a mindful activity, explaining that you have noticed their distraction. In doing this, you’re demonstrating not only your own mindful awareness, but also modeling an appropriate response. Decide on the length of the social media break before you start. Allow students to access their social media platforms, but encourage them to check in with themselves and really focus on their thoughts, feelings, and emotions as they scroll through the posts. Ask them to focus on any physiological sensations (ex. heart rate, breath) that are changing while they scroll through the online content. Students may be able to reflect on (or become aware of) the positive or negative effects that social media has on their physiological or psychological wellbeing. In addition to these benefits, the point of this activity is to demonstrate that mindfulness comes in many forms. Mindfulness really is about purposeful attention. This example helps to integrate purposeful attention into the reality of our students’ lives, rather than trying to compete with or fight against this reality.

Structure and Consistency

Because so many areas of life are stressful and unpredictable (and this was true pre-pandemic), providing consistency for both students and for yourself is important. The strategy we suggest here is to try to create a basic flow to your course delivery which can be kept consistent even if (or when) the delivery mode changes. This consistency will provide some stability. This can include using the same slide background and/or a consistent order to the lesson. For example, each class meeting might look something like this: mindful meditation, review of the previous class, overview of the current class, (mini content chunks, break, practice/review pre-break content, more mini content chunks), time for summary of current class, evaluation-related questions, and finally an exit ticket like the muddiest point (on an online board like Padlet or using Google Docs or Google Forms). In this case, the structure can remain consistent regardless of delivery, and students have clear expectations for what will happen during the class.

With more online teaching and learning occurring, there has been an increase in the promotion of various online tools. Many can add value to your lesson and to student retention or enjoyment of their learning. But, we caution instructors about getting caught up in the excitement of these new tools and to really consider the pedagogical purpose they might serve. It is easy for educators to get carried away in the excitement of using multiple new tools, technologies, and platforms. But for our students, it can feel overwhelming, especially if, in each of their courses, they have to learn multiple new tools/platforms. As instructors, we sometimes feel overwhelmed learning one new tool, so imagine how our students would feel having to become familiar with many simultaneously. To this end, creating a basic structure as we have suggested above and then implementing the consistent use of one or two tech tools, enables flexibility where needed but also provides some much-needed stability in a world which has been full of uncertainty. In this case, simplicity and consistency can be the keys to our students’ success.

Conclusions

In psychology, our instructional skills and course content lend themselves well to many practices which can benefit students during these stressful and uncertain times. Modeling the use of meditation, consistency, and embracing the instances when life interrupts our practice are all ways in which we can better support our students.

References

Chiodelli, R., Mello, L. T. N. D., Jesus, S. N. D., Beneton, E. R., Russel, T., & Andretta, I. (2020). Mindfulness-based interventions in undergraduate students: a systematic review. Journal of American College Health, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2020.1767109

Corey, G., Corey, M. S. & Muratori, M. (2018). I never knew I had a choice: Explorations in personal growth. Cengage Learning.

de Carvalho Mrad, F. C., da Silva, M. E., Lima, E. M., Bessa, A. L., de Bessa Junior, J., Netto, J. M. B., & de Almeida Vasconcelos, M. M. (2021). Toilet training methods in children with normal neuropsychomotor development: A systematic review. Journal of Pediatric Urology, 17(5), 635–643. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jpurol.2021.05.010

Jha, A. (March, 2017). How to tame your wandering mind [Video] TED Conferences. https://www.ted.com/talks/amishi_jha_how_to_tame_your_wandering_mind

Kennette, L. N., Lin, P. S. (2021). Healthier at home. Association for Psychological Science. https://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/remote-benefits

Wang, Q., Bowling, N. A., & Eschleman, K. J. (2010). A Meta-Analytic Examination of Work and General Locus of Control. Journal of Applied Psychology, 95(4), 761-768. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0017707

Williams, M., Teasdale, J., Segal Z. & Kabat-Zinn, J. (2007). The mindful way through depression: Freeing yourself from chronic unhappiness. Guilford Press

Zenner, C., Hermleben-Kurz, S. & Walach, H. (2014). Mindfulness-based interventions in schools: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Frontiers in Psychology, 5, 1-20. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2014.00603

Developing an IPI Aligned Introductory Psychology Course Without a Textbook

Tue, 05 Apr 2022 19:03:35 GMT

Julie Lazzara (Paradise Valley Community College)

When I began my career as an adjunct professor, I clutched tightly to the first introductory text put in my hands. Like a good professor, I assigned every chapter for the students to read and was committed to reading one chapter ahead throughout the course. I quickly found out that reading these long chapters on top of my full-time job and teaching prep was nearly impossible. I gave up and succumbed to skimming the chapters and reading the summaries. I wondered how many of my students did the same. After talking to colleagues, I found many omitted chapters to make the course more manageable. I was told which chapters to leave out was a matter of preference. Although this was a reasonable solution, it did not sit well with me. This was the beginning of the downfall of my relationship with "the textbook."

As semesters came and went, I felt that "the textbook" was not pulling its weight. As my teaching and expertise grew, "the textbook" stayed stagnant. Who was running the class, I wondered. Was it me, or was it "the textbook" that was the glue that held the class together? There was so much material to cover that I was unsure what was most important to emphasize to my students. If I was unsure, how could I expect my students to have the foresight to what would be on the test? I would often tell students that it was big themes that I hoped they took away from the class but they still got caught up in the minute details. I gradually decided to be more authentic and intentional with what I teach my introductory students and assess them. For me, this meant migrating away from the traditional textbook.

APA IPI and Backward Design

In October 2021, the APA adopted universal learning outcomes for Introductory Psychology for the first time through the Introductory Psychology Initiative (IPI). One of the key recommendations to strengthen your course to meet the new goals is to use Backward Design. Specifically, it is recommended that instructors "design course content and instruction around desired learning outcomes." However, many instructors structure their course around their chosen textbook, and thus the majority of classroom instruction is centered on the textbook (Hilton, 2020). Instructors who want to implement Backward Design may hit a roadblock because of copyright laws if they desire to edit and adapt their current commercial textbook.

The APA IPI does not recommend a universal text for introductory psychology. This gives instructors the freedom to build their course from the ground up. They do not need to be bound by a textbook already produced and adjust their pedagogy around it. Instead, they can choose to build their course materials by starting with the IPI learning objectives and intentionally choosing the context to support them. If a textbook is not used, what would be the cornerstone of the course? As an alternative, Landrum (2012) proposed that course readings could be used as course materials. Instructors in the past have also built their courses around non-fiction books and journal articles. If we begin to think about course materials instead of textbooks, then there is space to use various materials to generate content for the course.

OER as Course Materials

One consideration for course materials is the use of Open Educational Resources (OER). Many assume that OER is only used as a textbook replacement, but open and shared resources can go beyond a traditional textbook (Van Allen & Katz, 2020). Any materials that include a Creative Commons license are free to use without permission as long as proper attribution is given (Kim, 2007). This means that a more robust remixing and editing of the text is encouraged. The text is fully adaptable to meet the instructor's or institution's needs. While there has been a significant amount of coverage of the use of open educational resources as a content delivery system that lowers cost, there needs to be a shift in focus on using open education as a part of a design strategy that supports student learning (Paskevicius & Irvine, 2019). While course materials in college courses traditionally consisted of commercial textbooks, there are many more options today.

Sure, it’s free, but is it high quality?

One commonly cited drawback to OER is the question of quality. However, several recent studies have found that students achieve the same or better learning outcomes with OER than traditional textbooks (Hilton, 2019; Clinton & Khan, 2019; Bol et al., 2021). Most faculty may agree that the perfect textbook does not exist. However, there is no standard for judging textbook quality, and it is often interpreted as content accuracy (Martin & Kimmons, 2020). To choose the best textbook lies subjectively in the eye of the beholder.

If OER is so great, then why doesn’t everyone use it?

Using a commercial textbook may be the easier option for faculty, but at what cost? Faculty typically do not want students to take the easier route in their learning. Perhaps course materials customized by the instructor show effort and commitment to the course as a model to the students. The extra effort that faculty put in at the beginning of their course in preparing their course materials may have a significant payoff. Vojtech and Grissett (2017) found that undergraduate psychology students rated an instructor who used an open textbook higher on kindness, encouragement, and creativity than an instructor who used a commercial textbook. Davis and Fromuth (2019) found that students reported higher satisfaction with the custom psychology textbook than a traditional text. In another study, faculty reported that in customizing their materials specifically for their courses, there was more engagement and buy-in for the materials from their students (Lantrip & Ray, 2020). When faculty were asked about the impact of adopting OER on their teaching, they reported using a broader range of teaching and learning methods and engaged in more reflective practices (Weller et al., 2015).

OER in Psychology

Momentum has increased for OER use in psychology, and studies have measured its impact on students. Multiple studies have shown no statistically significant difference between performance in psychology courses between OER and publisher textbooks (Grissett & Huffman, 2019). Students preferred the OER to traditional textbooks in health psychology and program evaluation courses (Cooney, 2017; Philips et al., 2021). Cuttler (2019) found that the students using OER were twice as likely to report using their textbooks, reported using them more frequently, and perceived more overlap across all materials in comparison to a traditional textbook. Students may use the OER texts more because they are more relevant and contain more information directly impacting their quiz and test scores. Another benefit to the students besides cost is the ability to have less restricted access to course materials (Grissett & Huffman, 2019). Increased student accessibility is one of the APA IPI’s core goals to transform Introductory Psychology (Gurung & Neufeld, 2021).

Studies have also shown benefits to adopting OER instructors of psychology. Magro and Tabaei (2020) found that faculty directly appreciated adding their content to the OER text. Hardin et al. (2019) discovered that even novice professors could meet course objectives by using OER. This indicates that OER is not reserved for only more experienced professors. Students may even be more likely to enroll in psychology courses that require OER instead of a commercial textbook (Nusbaum & Cuttler 2020). The researchers also posit that instructors who use OER may be evaluated more positively than instructors who do not. These examples highlight the importance of considering the role of the textbook on faculty and how it affects students.

Build Your Own Introductory Psychology “Textbook” Resources

The following is a starting place of the most common OER for introductory psychology to build the base of your course materials with OER. Most of these come with instructor resources but look no further than the plethora of resources on the STP website if you need more.

1. OpenStax Psychology 2e- This edition was published in April 2020, and it continues to be updated if corrections are found. You can use the textbook precisely as it is online, in print, or via a PDF download. They now offer an add-on homework solution program called Openstax Tutor, but there is a small fee for students to enroll. Instructor resources are included.
a. Canvas Cartridge of OpenStax Psychology 2e- If your college uses Canvas as their LMS, you can drop in this free cartridge to load into your course
2. Noba Project- This free online platform allows you to pick and choose modules you like written by renowned experts. Here is an example of an introductory psychology textbook that I put together for my students. They can access it online with a link you give them and download it for offline use.
3. Lumen Learning- You can access Lumen courses and materials for free and even link directly to them. Most of their materials are remixed from Openstax and Noba with additional authored content. Students can pay a fee to use their online homework management system.
4.     Pressbooks version of OpenStax Psychology 2e- I took the OpenStax text and put it into Pressbooks, making it easier to edit and make it your own. Anyone can access this version with the link, and there are also several download options.
a.     Maricopa’s Edition of OpenStax Psychology 2e- As part of a grant project, I modified the Pressbook text previously mentioned and revised it to align with the course objectives for my college district. You can do something similar to make it your own.
b.     University of Albert’s Version of OpenStax Psychology 2e- Here is an example of another college that remixed the Openstax text to make it their own.
c. Hardcopy of Curated Text- There are typically a few students a semester who want to buy a hard copy of a text. One option is for them to pay to have the PDF printed, or you can offer a hard copy available to purchase for just the cost of printing.

Assess the “Textbook” you Created

After selecting or creating your course materials, you may wonder if it is up to par. Although Gurung and Martin’s (2011) Textbook Assessment and Usage Scale (TAUS) is geared toward students, it can also be adapted for faculty to use. Compare the traditional textbook you typically use to the curated materials you prepared for your course. The beauty is that in the areas that you scored low, you can fix and adapt them to your liking. For example, are the photographs not reflective of the people and places you teach? You can swap them out with open access images or even include your photography.

Conclusion

The way the world receives information has drastically changed in the last 50 years. This shift directly affects how teachers gather information and share it with their students. Weitien (1988) recognized that selecting a textbook in psychology is a difficult process partly because of the saturation in the market. Today there are even more choices than ever before, along with ever-changing modalities to access the text. The new APA IPI gives psychology instructors more academic freedom to pick the most relevant content to the context of their classroom within the framework of the themes and SLOs. Engler and Shedlosky-Shoemaker (2019) report that content mastery in introductory psychology depends not on whether the course text is commercial or OER. Hardin et al. (2019) found a slight increase in content knowledge in a general psychology OER course. As a department chair or committee often decides on course materials, some instructors may not get the opportunity to choose what text they use for introductory psychology. It is prudent for departments to review their criteria for selecting an introductory text (Altman et al., 2006). When weighing the options of commercial texts, consider alternatives for course materials that may best serve both your students and faculty.

References

Altman, W. S., Ericksen, K., & Pena-Shaff, J. B. (2006). An inclusive process for departmental textbook selection. Teaching of Psychology, 33(4), 228-231. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top3304_2

American Psychological Association. (2020). The APA Introductory Psychology Initiative. https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/undergrad/introductory-psychology-initiative

Bol, L., Esqueda, M. C., Ryan, D., & Kimmel, S. C. (2021). A Comparison of Academic Outcomes in Courses Taught With Open Educational Resources and Publisher Content. Educational Researcher, https://doi.org/10.3102/0013189X211052563

Clinton, V., & Khan, S. (2019). Efficacy of open textbook adoption on learning performance and course withdrawal rates: a meta-analysis. AERA Open, 5(3), https://doi.org/10.1177/2332858419872212

Cooney, C. (2017). What impacts do OER have on students? Students share their experiences with a health psychology OER at New York City College of Technology. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 18(4), 155-178. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v18i4.3111

Davis, T. L., & Fromuth, M. E. (2019). Creating and Evaluating a General Psychology Custom Textbook: A Goal-Oriented Approach. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 18(3), 305-316. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475725719830302

Engler, J. N., & Shedlosky-Shoemaker, R. (2019). Facilitating student success: The role of open educational resources in introductory psychology courses. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 18(1), 36-47. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475725718810241

Grissett, J. O., & Huffman, C. (2019). An open versus traditional psychology textbook: Student performance, perceptions, and use. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 18(1), 21-35. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475725718810181

Gurung, R. A., & Neufeld, G. (2021). Transforming introductory psychology: Expert advice on teacher training, course design, and student success. American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/0000260-000

Gurung, R. A. R., & Martin, R. C. (2011). Predicting textbook reading: The textbook assessment and usage scale. Teaching of Psychology, 38, 22-28. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628310390913

Hardin, E. E., Eschman, B., Spengler, E. S., Grizzell, J. A., Moody, A. T., Ross-Sheehy, S., & Fry, K. M. (2019). What happens when trained graduate student instructors switch to an open textbook? A controlled study of the impact on student learning outcomes. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 18(1), 48-64. https://doi.org/10.1177/1475725718810909

Hilton, J. (2020). Open educational resources, student efficacy, and user perceptions: a synthesis of research published between 2015 and 2018. Educational Technology Research and Development, 68(3), 853-876. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11423-019-09700-4

Landrum, R. E. (2012). Selection of textbooks or readings for your course. In B. M. Schwartz & R. A. R. Gurung (Eds.), Evidence-based teaching for higher education (pp. 117–129). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/13745-007

Kim, M. (2007). The Creative Commons and copyright protection in the digital era: Uses of Creative Commons licenses. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 13(1), 187-209. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00392.x

Martin, T., & Kimmons, R. (2020). Faculty members' lived experiences with choosing open educational resources. Open Praxis, 12(1), 131-144. https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.12.1.987

Magro, J., & Tabaei, S. V. (2020). Results from a Psychology OER pilot program: faculty and student perceptions, cost savings, and academic outcomes. Open Praxis, 12(1), 83-99. https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.12.1.1007

Nusbaum, A. T., & Cuttler, C. (2020). Hidden Impacts of OER: Effects of OER on Instructor Ratings and Course Selection. In Frontiers in Education (Vol. 5, p. 72). https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2020.00072

Vojtech, G., & Grissett, J. (2017). Student perceptions of college faculty who use OER. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 18(4), 155-171. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v18i4.3032

Weller, M., De Los Arcos, B., Farrow, R., Pitt, B., & McAndrew, P. (2015). The impact of OER on teaching and learning practice. Open Praxis, 7(4), 351-361. https://doi.org/10.5944/openpraxis.7.4.227

Neuroscience for Undergraduate Psychology Programs on a Limited Budget

Fri, 04 Mar 2022 03:57:20 GMT

William J.A. Eiler II, Jamie L. Bromley, Ryan A. Rush, and Bob A. Bromley (Franklin College)

*Note: For the version with figures and additional resources included, please follow this link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/27kstlgey8mnmas/March%202022%20Neuroscience%20for%20Undergraduate%20Education%20on%20a%20Limited%20Budget.docx?dl=0

Neuroscience, as a field, has exploded over the past two decades (Society for Neuroscience, 2021). It seems to be everywhere one looks: Bookstores, popular media, continuing education workshops, etc. While it may be included in many undergraduate psychology curricula (NCES, 2019), smaller schools may still be wondering how to incorporate neuroscience research into their programs. Additionally, some may still be struggling on how to include neuroscience concepts and activities across undergraduate programs. Fortunately, with some ingenuity and creativity, both of these things are doable and affordable for most undergraduate programs, especially smaller schools with probably even smaller budgets. This article will share ideas for neuroscience-based activities to include in psychology courses that are engaging and informative for students. Additionally, ways to involve undergraduates inside and outside of the classroom in community service and neuroscience research will be discussed. Finally, resources for purchasing affordable equipment like EEG and eye tracking and using 3-D printing to create equipment at low cost will be shared.

Growth of Neuroscience and Career Opportunities

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, there were 6,191 Neuroscience degrees conferred in 2017-18 (NCES, 2019). This reflects a 7% increase from the previous year, and a 30% increase from the previous decade (2007-2008). The job outlook for the those in the field of Neuroscience is expected to grow 17% in the next decade (2020-2030), which is much faster than the average (OOH, 2021). The most common areas for employment in the Neuroscience field is research and development, academia, hospitals, pharmaceuticals, and physician’s offices (OOH, 2021). While there are many opportunities to pursue Neuroscience in graduate programs, with 52 Master’s programs and 58 Ph.D. programs currently offered in the United States, there are also career opportunities for undergraduate students that have an educational background in Neuroscience. Some of these careers include pharmaceutical sales, equipment technicians, medical and healthcare managers, research assistants, and many more (OOH, 2021). Thus, including Neuroscience across the psychology curriculum will greatly benefit students in numerous ways and can provide additional career opportunities for them.

Starting Small in General Psychology

For a basic introduction to Neuroscience in a General Psychology course, students without a background in Biology may be intimidated and not engaged in learning about the brain and nervous system. One activity that is easily incorporated into General Psychology courses would be creating neurons with Play-Doh. We have been doing this activity at Franklin College for the past 12 years, and students have greatly enjoyed this and have performed better on their exams when asked about the structure of neuron. Students are divided into groups and provided with several colors of Play-Doh. They are instructed to build a basic neuron on a blank piece of paper and label the main structures and describe the functions. Each student in the group is assigned one part of the structure to build so that everyone is involved and engaged. Once neurons are complete, students view the different neurons and vote on the best one in terms of accuracy and style. However, they are not allowed to vote for their neuron! We often feature the winners on our social media department pages with the student’s permission, and we often give a small prize to the winning students, like one of our department stress brains (See Figure 1: Play-Doh Neurons).

As with the Play-Doh neuron activity, we have observed that engaging in hands-on neuroscience activities enhances the student’s retention and their interest in a potentially boring, overly technical topic. Therefore, we created a similarly engaging neuroanatomy laboratory for use in our introductory classes. As human brains are difficult to obtain outside of a medical school setting, we use sheep brains as an alternative for this activity. Various biological sample vendors, such as Carolina Biological (www.carolina.com) offer these brains at affordable prices, approximately $15 apiece. Using the sheep brains, we highlight the similarity of neuroanatomical structures with similar, previously discussed structures of the human brain. For our lab, we pre-cut the brains into two hemispheres along the midsagittal line, this not only effectively doubles the number of brains, but it also allows students to observe subcortical structures. These brains, when handled and stored properly, can last across a number of semesters. In addition, if needed, we have found that small cake pans from your local dollar store work just as well as more expensive dissection trays while Amazon is a good source for inexpensive dissection probes. Though this activity could “gross out” some students, most enjoy the ability to interact with real neural tissue and report that this lab is a beneficial learning experience.(See Figure 2).

Student and Community Involvement

Two ways to increase student involvement and excitement in Neuroscience would be to create a Neuroscience student group on campus and provide community outreach through public library programs for school-aged children. Before we had a Neuroscience major, our students wanted to create a Neuroscience Club, and they went through the process of developing a new student organization, a constitution and by-laws, and requesting a budget through our Student Involvement division. Neuroscience Club is continuing to grow, and they now have plans for field trips and to visit regional graduate programs in Neuroscience. Other club activities include demonstrations of the Neuroscience equipment, sharing research projects, or bringing in guest speakers. A club is a great way for students to meet others with similar interests and to spread the word of the Neuroscience programming on campus.

Additionally, the club partnered with our Psi Chi chapter to create Brain Day at our local community library. We reached out to the children’s librarian in charge of programming, and for the past three years, we have offered an educational program on learning about the brain for elementary school students. The college students staff different hands-on stations for the children to learn about reaction times, explore sheep brains, create brain hats or color brain ornaments, and test out the important of cerebrospinal fluid on protecting the brain with an egg experiment (See Figure 3).

Neuroscience Equipment for Undergraduate Education

Although there are numerous ways of providing low-cost, engaged learning activities in neuroscience, much of the equipment and materials used in the study of neuroscience are prohibitively expensive and represent a significant hurdle to small schools wishing to offer a neuroscience curriculum. However, we have experimented with a number of ways, such as employing emerging technologies and searching out innovative start-up companies, to overcome these obstacles and provide our students with meaningful opportunities in neuroscience despite our limited budget.

Recently, we have begun to embrace the utility of 3D printing and the opportunities it can afford in the development and creation of inexpensive equipment. Although the thought of 3D printing may be a bit daunting, the technology is surprisingly accessible with a shallow learning curve backed by innumerable websites and YouTube videos dedicated to the training of the uninitiated. Entry-level printers also have a very reasonable price point. Our department purchased the reliable PRUSA Research i3 MK3S printer (www.prusa3d.com) for $749 USD; however, similarly capable open-source printers such as the Creality Ender-3 V2 (www.creality3dofficial.com) can be found for around $250 USD. Thus far, we have printed a number of free, pre-existing files found online for use as demonstration models and teaching aids such as a life-size replica of Phineas Gage’s skull, rat skulls for the demonstration of stereotaxic surgery, and models to demonstrate popular optical illusions. You can even find step-by-step tutorials that allow you to covert MRI images into 3D files for printing. Recently we have begun to use design software such as Tinkercad and Fusion 360 (both of which are free for educational institutions) to create our own 3D models. Specifically, we have been working with various students to combine open-source electronics such as Arduino controller boards and Raspberry Pi microcomputers with 3D printed designs to create a modular operant chamber similar to those that typically cost thousands of dollars (See Figure 4). It is our goal to create additional behavioral neuroscience testing equipment such as elevated plus and radial-arm mazes, rotarod, and activity monitors, using 3D printing.

Utilizing Innovative Companies

As mentioned above, providing students with meaningful experiences in neuroscience can be difficult on a small budget so, in addition to employing emerging technologies such as 3D printing and open-source electronics, we have also sought to improve our laboratory capabilities by seeking out smaller innovative companies for equipment rather than larger more well-known suppliers. One example of this is our recent acquisition of electroencephalographic (EEG) equipment through the company OpenBCI (www.openbci.com) at a fraction of the cost of such a system through other suppliers (stand-alone bundles start at $1300.00 USD). Although we as faculty are still new to the world of EEG, this equipment was so easy to set up and calibrate we have already been able to use this fully open-source system in the classroom to demonstrate the concept of neurofeedback by allowing students to turn a fan on and off with their mind. We have been working with a group of students to integrate the electroencephalographical and the electromyographical capabilities of this system to control a remote control car, while another student began using the system to conduct sleep study research. In addition to our EEG system, we also recently began working with an eye-tracking system purchased through Gazepoint (www.gazept.com). Equipment through this company was much more affordable than similar equipment offered by more well-known companies such as Tobii and offers us the ability to provide research opportunities to our students in emerging fields such as neuromarketing.

We have also found several other smaller companies that produce various products that are perfect for in-class demonstrations of neuroscience concepts. For example, Backyard Brains (www.backyardbrains.com) is a small start-up company that offers affordable equipment for neuroscience demonstrations. My favorites from this company are “RoboRoach” which allows you and your students to control an actual roach through the manipulation of its sensory systems and the “Human-Human” interface that allows one person to control the movement of another person’s arm through the stimulation of motor neurons. These are fun, easy demonstrations that have an appreciable impact on students and are relatively affordable with prices from $159.99 USD or in a bundle with three additional products for $999.98 USD. Our students have also really enjoyed the impairment goggles purchased from Drunk Busters (www.drunkbusters.com). These goggles simulate the visual impairment that accompanies the use of psychoactive drugs such as alcohol, marijuana, and ecstasy. There are numerous ways you can use these goggles to demonstrate impairment due to drug use such as cup stacking and mock field sobriety tests, but my personal favorite is having them attempt to drive using a steering wheel controller paired with a driving video game such as Forza.

Conclusion

As you can see, incorporating innovative and engaging activities is accessible to most undergraduate psychology programs and even for high school teachers, if you are aware of the money-saving opportunities available. We will continue to explore new ways to engage students and the community to learn about Neuroscience and to encourage students to consider careers in this exciting and ever-growing field.

References

Chapter XII: SFN at 50 Years: Focus on the Future. Society for Neuroscience. (2020). Retrieved December 21, 2021, from https://www.sfn.org/about/history-of-sfn/1969-2019/chapter-12

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. (2021). Medical scientists. In Occupational Outlook Handbook.

https://www.bls.gov/ooh/life-physical-and-social-science/medical-scientists.htm

U.S. Department of Education. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). (2019). Digestof Education Statistics. https://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d19/tables/dt19_318.30.asp

Fictional Films in Your Psych Classes? Your Students Will Learn Something!

Tue, 01 Feb 2022 22:29:49 GMT

Alexander B. Swan (Eureka College)

Picture it (pun-intended)—you and your students, all starting intently at the screen as Joy and Sadness, with the help of Bing-Bong, desperately try to get back to Riley’s Headquarters to break her out of the funk she’s feeling after moving across the country to a new place and a new school. Yep, that’s the plot of the Pixar film, Inside Out (2015). But wait, why are you watching an animated movie in your psychology class, taking up precious time for material?

What if I told you that this is precious material time? It may seem odd if you’re not used to using full class periods for film viewing, but from my experience, it is a fantastic learning and material-delivery tool (e.g., Bluestone, 2000; Mishra, 2018). One discussion that tends to arise when I mention using films in class is the use of documentary films vs. fictional Hollywood film, such as Inside Out. The argument tends to be about using factual information rather than fictionalized information, either based on completely fictional and fantastical plotlines or a fictionalized account of a true story. I hear this argument and find docs to be wonderful teaching tools—and some even have great entertainment and production value. But in this essay, I want to promote the use of fictional films as pedagogical tools that not only entertain, but also promote critical thinking skills.

The Ways to Use These Films

The primary way I use fictional films in my classes is to promote critical thinking skills. Perhaps one of the strongest ways to accomplish this is by having students assess the accuracy of portrayal for the intended psychological concepts (Bluestone, 2000; Fleming et al., 1990; Gregg et al., 1995; Wedding & Niemiec, 2014). For example, in Inside Out, there are several psychological concepts that can be broached, including emotions, memories, or even depression. I use this film in several classes and tend to highlight that the film had noted emotion psychologist Dacher Keltner as a consultant. Students can explore how connected the emotions portrayed (Joy, Sadness, Disgust, Anger, and Fear) are to the current understanding of emotion research. With respect to memories, students can explore our current spatial models of memory, especially long-term memory, are shown in the new world of a person’s head.

On the other side of the portrayal coin, bad portrayals of psychological concepts, can also spur critical thinking. One of my top films to explore bad psychological science is Lucy (2014). Students are immediately thrust into a world that has famed scientists believing in the myth that humans only use 10% of their brains. Of course, using more means special powers, right? A better example of exploration of accuracy, however, comes in the form of the film I have used the most in my classes: Memento (2000). In this film, the main character suffers from anterograde amnesia, similar to what is described about H.M. by Scoville and Milner (1957) or the many documentaries on Clive Wearing. There are accurate portrayals of the memory impairment, like how another character is described to have been put under memory tests or how the main character nearly describes recalled memories in general; but then there are inaccurate portrayals, like the length of the main character’s working memory or how he describes it in several ways to other characters. Students have to grapple with the differences presented in the film to the information presented in the material of the course. This nuance is crucially important to build critical thinking skills.

Another way fictional film pedagogy is useful in the classroom stems from the desire to use varied material to reach students at all stages and backgrounds. While some students might prefer the straight empirical findings of the hottest psychological studies, many others prefer the varied active learning quality that can come with film in the classroom (Gregg et al., 1995). Along with the portrayal argument, the artistic nature of the film can be beneficial to understanding psychological concepts. Boyatzis (1994) explores how students can use a fictional film to discuss emotional and social development. Fleming et al. (1990) discusses usage of psychological disorder films to explore intimately how a character might deal with their disorder, or how others in their lives might deal with the disorders. I’ve explored recently in great deal with colleagues how films like The Hours (2002) portrays three women with depression and bipolar disorder across three distinct time periods, and how the culture of the time periods impacts how these women are treated and how they cope. With fictional films, you can get a glimpse of how these characters directly deal. While this is possible with documentary films, there is a sense of disconnection without the artistic direction of the scene, the camera angles, or even the music. This extra stuff can give students a deeper insight into the struggles of characters and their illnesses.

A third way I like using fictional films in my courses is the discussion about the filmmakers’ decisions. These are people with limited knowledge of psychological concepts in general, and thus their perspectives are useful windows for students to explore. Students can approach the content from the perspective of filmmakers and discuss their lay understanding from those that put the spin on the fictionalized material. For example, A Clockwork Orange (1971) clearly portrays the use of aversive conditioning on the main character. And the director, Stanley Kubrick, describes and films the features of the process with relatively accuracy. But if we compare that to M. Night Shyamalan‘s Split (2016) and the portrayal of Dissociative Identity Disorder, it is clear that he as a writer-director doesn’t necessarily understand the nuance and appearance of the disorder (albeit, the world is somewhat fantastical).

How to Assess Learning with Films?

If you’re interested in incorporating films into your classes, either using class time or assigning the films to view outside of class, there are several ways to assess whether that critical thinking and evaluation of the artistic material is connected to your course learning outcomes and conceptual material.

The most common assessment appears to be the analysis paper. This is the typical assignment I use with films in my classes. Boyatzis (1994) describes in detail the various prompts you can include to encourage students to evaluate the course material within the context of the films. While the prompts in the paper are geared toward child development, they can be adapted for whatever material your course focuses on, such as memory, psychological disorders, learning, or even sensation and perception (yes, there are few films out there for this niche topic!).

Gregg et al. (1995) offers additional examples of assessments, such as having students watch a film from a list of options and create a diary of experiences they have had similar to the characters in the film. Another option, specifically for a psychological disorders course, is to have the students evaluate a character’s symptoms using diagnostic criteria from the DSM or the ICD. I do caution the use of the latter, as students should be given a clear disclaimer that films will likely exaggerate symptoms for narrative reasons and may not reflect the reality of the conditions in real life or the appropriateness of the diagnostic categories.

One additional option of assessment that I tend to use in my introductory psychology course is the use of a short answer question on a test. This is usually a broad open-ended question that doesn’t require too much psychological knowledge—it’s an introductory course after all—or deep viewing practices (e.g., multiple viewings to capture all the nuance).

One thing to keep in mind when designing these assessments: engage in previewing the films and highlight the concepts that you find to be the most appropriate. There is going to be a lot of subjectivity in the film analysis, especially from younger students toward older films. I tend to keep my rubrics as open as possible, so that students can have the freedom to apply the course concepts to whatever scene they see fit. Sometimes, my students capture things that I do not. For example, when I showed Inside Out to my Psychology in Film course, one student pointed out the interesting gendering of the emotion characters in the minds of Riley vs. the adults in the film. It was clear that this was something I had missed, and I now use this information in all discussions I have about the film.

Where To Find Appropriate Films?

As a firm believer that most films are psychologically-based, because as humans, we tend to make art about ourselves, it’s likely you’ll be able to find films everywhere you go. But, if you’re just starting out in this pedagogical practice, I can recommend several places to find great films for various subdisciplines in psychology.

Of course, trying an internet search for “psychology films” will bring a wealth of information. However, it’s hard to know which results are good and which aren’t so good. Indiana University maintains an excellent repository, which includes ratings (and who among us doesn’t love data?). It’s called the Cognitive Science Movie Index (https://cogfilms.sitehost.iu.edu/), and while the name might indicate niche films or films that you couldn’t use in a social psychology class, you’ll be pleasantly surprised! There are several keywords to narrow searches and many films have been tagged to fit multiple concepts and ideas within psychology. As I mentioned, there are three ratings for each film, each on a scale from 1-7: overall film quality (it might be a decent cognitive science movie, but does the film stink?), relevance (it’s tagged with AI, but is it really about artificial intelligence?), and accuracy (how accurate is the portrayal with what we currently know about that topic?). The great news about these ratings is that they are user-generated. So if you pick a film from this Index, you’re invited to add your ratings after viewing. I’ve used this resource several times, as many of my courses are in this realm.

Gregg et al. (1995) lists several films in different psychological categories, each used by one or more of the authors in their courses. Boyatzis (1994) includes several films related to child development and this list has a bonus: foreign language films, in case that is of interest to you as an instructor or in the case that you give the option to your students to choose, their film interests.

Give It a Try!

If you haven’t engaged in film pedagogy before, I hope this essay was a decent help to get your journey started. Again, fictional films are varied and should be used with as much preparation that you give to your other course pedagogy and assessments. It may be simpler to use documentary films, but I definitely suggest broadening those film horizons. You can aid your students’ critical thinking abilities by offering them an artistic exploration of the content, in a funny, thrilling, and entertaining way! I consistently get student evaluation comments, anonymous and otherwise that tell me they appreciated the incorporation of the films in class. You get to have your very own Monty Python moment and exclaim, “And now for something completely different!

References

Bluestone, C. (2000). Feature Films as a Teaching Tool. College Teaching, 48(4), 141–146. https://doi.org/10.1080/87567550009595832

Boyatzis, C. J. (1994). Using feature films to teach social development. Teaching of Psychology, 21, 99–101. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top2102_9

Fleming, M. Z., Piedmont, R. L., & Hiam, C. M. (1990). Images of Madness: Feature Films in Teaching Psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 17(3), 185–187. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top1703_12

Gregg, V. R., Hosley , C. A., Weng, A., & Montemayor, R. (1995). Using feature films to promote active learning in the college classroom. U.S. Department of Education, Office of Educational Research and Improvement, Washington D.C. (ERIC Document Reproduction Service No. ED 389367).

Mishra, S. (2018). The World in the Classroom: Using Film as a Pedagogical Tool. Contemporary Education Dialogue, 15(1), 111–116. https://doi.org/10.1177/0973184917742250

Scoville, W. B., & Milner, B. (1957). Loss of recent memory after bilateral hippocampal lesions. Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, 20(1), 11–21. https://doi.org/10.1136/jnnp.20.1.11

Wedding, D., & Niemiec, R. M. (2015). Movies & Mental Illness, 4th Edition (Vol. 47, Issue 9, pp. 737–738).

Teachers’ Intense Dislike for Students

Thu, 06 Jan 2022 20:59:05 GMT

Guy A. Boysen

Department of Psychology, McKendree University

I knew I was in trouble when the student would not stop emailing me. The emails always came the night before homework was due and felt like one of those classic foot-in-the-door scams that starts with “Do you have time for one question?” and escalates to “How much money would you like to donate?” A typical series of emails went something like this:

Student email #1: “The assignment says give an example of harmful dysfunction. What do you want us to say for that?”

Student email #2: “So the example is in the reading?”

Student email #3: “I’ve read and I can’t find it. Please help me.”

Student email #4: “Would mental illness be an example?”

Student email #5: “Can you give me a page number? I can’t find it.”

With each assignment, I was doing more and more of the student’s work. And with each assignment, I was growing more and more resentful. Then, the student started to criticize my teaching to other professors. I really, really disliked this student.

Intense dislike of students is something that teachers do not talk about. Certainly, griping about students is a popular topic of conversation in academia (tied with griping about the administration and griping about parking), but teachers rarely admit that there are some students they seriously dislike. It seems so unprofessional, so petty, so unteacherly. I wanted to do research on this topic for years but always put it off as too distasteful – who wants to be known as “that professor who hates students”?

Eventually, I overcame my wariness and surveyed college teachers about their experiences with disliked students (Boysen et al., 2020, 2021). As it turned out, I was not alone in disliking the occasional student. In fact, disliking students was common. Although teachers said dislike had many negative consequences on their teaching, they also provided ideas for how to manage it. I summarize these results in the sections that follow.

How Common is Intense Dislike of Students?

Have you ever had a student in a class that you intensely disliked? If you said “yes” to this question, you are like a lot of other college teachers. In fact, across two independent surveys, about 50% of college teachers said that they had intensely disliked a student. This not to say that it occurs frequently. About 80% of faculty who had experienced disliked said that it happened, at most, once every couple of years. Nonetheless, it is typical for college teachers to dislike a student at some point in their careers.

When asked what caused the dislike, teachers cited reasons ranging from the trivial – “Constant talking/whispering during a large lecture class” – to the terrifying – “He found me multiple times per day to intrusively and anxiously ask me questions about grades or assignments in a somewhat angry way.” Although reasons varied widely, the most common ones will sound familiar.

By far, the most common reasons for dislike centered on students’ disrespect for the teacher or the course. For example, one teacher reported dislike for a student who “was rude in class, dismissive of the material, and would challenge everything they got wrong.” Another teacher quoted a student as saying “well, I talked to my biology instructor and he says this class isn't important." Psychology teachers respect themselves and their science, so it is difficult to encounter students who do not share this respect.

Other common reasons for student dislike might be broadly characterized as “bad behavior.” Academic irresponsibility was a frequently reported form of bad behavior. One teacher provided a typical list of student laxities including “lack of motivation; not attending class; not completing assignments, but submitting blank documents to try to get points.” Such poor academic behavior can be infuriating to teachers who have a passion for psychology and helping others learn the topic. Being disruptive is another bad behavior. Acting out in class, playing on electronic devices, having side conversations, and hijacking discussion are just some of the disruptions that teachers said led to dislike.

Finally, teachers reported that some students simply have unlikable personalities. Narcissism, arrogance, smugness, and neediness are annoying personality traits that lead teachers to dislike students. Entitlement is another trait that riles up a lot of teachers. Some students expect special treatment and become upset when teachers do not meet their demands. One teacher said, “I would not grant a delayed grade for the course given the student had not completed anything all semester. The student then sent an email to the Dean full of lies about my alleged unwillingness to work with her.” Teachers like to feel helpful, not used. Ultimately, the complexities of human relationships make some conflict inevitable, and relationships between teachers and students are no exception.

How Does Disliking Students Impact Teachers?

In the previous section, I characterized dislike as infrequent because about 80% of teachers experience dislike only every few years or so – this glosses over the 20% of faculty who dislike students every year, hardly an insubstantial number. I hope these folks are alright because disliking a student can be quite stressful. In my own experience with the student who wanted me to do their homework, just seeing their name in my inbox spiked my blood pressure. This is just one example of dislike’s many stressful consequences.

Disliking a student can take an emotional and motivational toll on teachers. In my surveys, teachers said that they worried about interactions with the student inside and outside of class. One teacher stated that “I dreaded running into the student elsewhere on campus. When I did, I would get very anxious and tried to avoid them.” Sometimes teachers started to doubt themselves and their teaching ability. Or, if a student’s behavior was threatening, teachers became fearful. For example, one teacher said that fear of a student’s behavior led them to have “my cell phone out at all times in case I needed to call security.” As can be expected, dislike can cause a decrease in motivation: “It made me dread going to teach that particular class.”

Dread for a course is not the route to teaching effectiveness, and some teachers reported that dislike made them worse teachers. The problems posed by just one student sometimes hurt the class overall. One teacher said, “It put me in a grumpy mood whenever I was heading off to that class, which directly affected how I taught. It took a toll on me and I know other students could feel it.” Some teachers lost their focus: “I became distracted while teaching due to managing my own emotions.” Another teacher said that “it increased the cognitive load on me as I taught and simultaneously needed to stop their misbehavior.” Teaching is hard enough; the added distraction of a disliked student makes it doubly challenging.

Interacting with a disliked student, inside or outside of class, can become a burden. Teachers may hide in their offices, stay off email, and put off interactions with the student. Sometimes, it was too much to take. As one teacher said, “I finally lost it and screamed at the student in a two-minute diatribe that I still regret to this day.” Even in extreme circumstances, teachers should not lose their tempers with students. Thus, it is important to do something about dislike before frustration overcomes pedagogy.

What Can Teachers Do About Disliking Students?

So, student dislike is common and stressful – that sounds pretty bleak, but there is hope. In my survey, I also asked teachers how they dealt with dislike, and they provided many possible solutions. In general, their responses fell into two categories: managing student behaviors that cause dislike and managing reactions to the student. Starting with managing student behaviors, teachers should consider basic classroom management techniques (Svinicki & McKeachie, 2011; Wingert & Molitor, 2009). There are well-established tricks for keeping students’ attention, managing classroom discussions, motivating students to do coursework, dealing with excuses, and prevention of cheating. If something is interfering with teaching or learning in the classroom, do something about it.

Teachers do not have to fight classroom-management battles alone. The teachers in my survey asked their colleagues for suggestions. In addition, they occasionally went to administrators for support and intervention when circumstances became dire. Nonetheless, the responsibility for managing students ultimately falls on the teacher, and the most common response to dislike was intentional professionalism. Teachers established rules. They stuck to policy. Hard as it was, they treated disliked students fairly. As one teacher put it, the answer to dislike was “setting clear boundaries, communicating clearly and assertively, [and] not backing down.”

Not all reasons for dislike can be eliminated through classroom management techniques. Students can be innovative rule breakers, noxious personalities tend to persist, and interpersonal dynamics can produce unexpected conflict. For all these reasons and more, teachers must also be prepared to manage their reactions to disliked students. Ultimately, the most important skill is to be professional under all circumstances. Keep calm, think before acting, and treat the disliked student with respect – these are tough but essential rules.

Keeping things professional on the outside does not prevent internal storms of emotion, so teachers also reported using general stress-reduction techniques to deal with their reactions to disliked students. They sought social support from trusted colleagues. They engaged in self-care such as meditation and counseling. Finally, some teachers said that they employed cognitive shifts. They reframed the situation to emphasize that the problem was about the student, not themselves. Or, they tried to empathize with the student, doing things like imagining the situation from their perspective. Sometimes, getting to know a student just a little better is all that is needed to switch them from an enemy to an ally.

Conclusion

So, what happened with the student who kept emailing me for answers to homework? In a professional, constructive way, I explained that my objective was to teach students to read and think critically – as such, I was done giving out answers to homework questions via email. I never let on that I knew about the criticism. The emails stopped. I was less stressed. To be frank, the student still kind of annoyed me. There is no perfect solution to the problem of disliking students. However, teachers should know that it is a common, stressful experience that can be handled professionally. With that knowledge, they can prepare for challenges that lie ahead.

References

Boysen, G. A., Isaacs, R., Chicosky, R. L., & Delmore, E. E. (2020). Intense dislike of students: Frequency, causes, effects, and management among college teachers. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/stl0000200

Boysen, G. A., Sampo, B. Axtell, E., & Kishimoto, A. (2021). Dislikable students: The perspective of college teachers. College Teaching. https://doi.org/10.1080/87567555.2021.1882374

Svinicki, M. D., & McKeachie, W. J. (2011). McKeachie’s teaching tips: Strategies, research, and theory for college and university teachers. (13th ed.). Wadsworth, Cengage Learning.

Wingert, D., & Molitor, T. (2009). Best practices: Preventing and managing challenging classroom situations. Currents in Teaching and Learning, 1(2), 4–18.

The Case for Asynchronous Online Courses: How Do Students Benefit?

Thu, 16 Dec 2021 23:45:46 GMT

Lynne N. Kennette

Durham College

Phoebe S. Lin

Framingham State University

Students who take at least one online course during their program are more likely to complete their degree (Wavle & Ozogul, 2019). Recently, various different types of e-learning have been implemented, but online education existed before COVID-19. Unlike synchronous online courses where live instruction occurs on a weekly basis (much like a traditional classroom), asynchronous courses provide students with added flexibility as there are no daily/weekly time-specific attendance requirements. In this way, students still encounter the weekly content provided by faculty (by way of recorded lecture, activities, videos, etc.), but at the time of their choosing (though most have regular, usually weekly deadlines for students). This asynchronous online learning environment is what we are referring to in this article. When we are discussing asynchronous online learning, we frame it as learning that occurs within a specific semester at an institution, with weekly/bi-weekly deadlines, and not the open ended, self-paced courses, like some massive open online course (MOOCs) where you can enroll whenever and end whenever (we also recognize that the grading is often quite different in these courses compared to a more traditional asynchronous online course).

Although not all students will benefit from the asynchronous online learning environment, many do, and many students prefer it (Cutherell & Lyon, 2007) for various reasons (including some of the benefits we discuss herein). Below, we propose that online asynchronous courses provide several benefits for students including physiological ones. Additional benefits include removing barriers, motivation, flexibility, and time for reflection.

Physiological Benefits

The two major physiological benefits of asynchronous learning are more sleep and less stress. First, because the class work can be completed at any time, there is no need to wake up early to get to class, or earlier to have enough time for a potentially long commute. Second, asynchronous learning affords students benefits that can help lower stress. For example, saving money on parking and commuting costs (gas, transit pass, etc). Additionally, some of the daily life stressors (e.g., traffic, line-ups at the coffee shop) can be reduced or eliminated. Daily stressors such as these, as well as long commutes, are linked to higher levels of stress and high blood pressure (Antoun et al., 2017; Hoehner et al., 2012).

Removes Barriers

Other benefits revolve around the theme of removing barriers. For example, some aspects of universal design for learning (UDL; CAST, 2018) are easier to implement online (e.g., closed-captioning, larger font size, etc). Therefore, students may not need to self-identify their need for accommodations, at least in instances where the online course is designed following the principles of UDL. By increasing accessibility, this reduces or eliminates unearned advantages of more privileged students, such as able-bodied privileges, cultural privileges in language fluency, etc. This then would allow students who could be at a disadvantage in traditional face-to-face classrooms to thrive and achieve improved learning outcomes.

Another example is that, in some cases, financial or family limitations may make it necessary for someone to choose a program at a school that is nearby rather than a program that they are actually interested in, regardless of where they are located (Pastore et al., 2009). Additionally, a woman needing to share personal information related to morning sickness/pregnancy, miscarriage, etc. can be avoided as can other ailments that can affect both sexes (e.g., injury). Further, asynchronous learning in a remote environment can benefit pregnant students by eliminating potential bias from the instructor given that findings show pregnant individuals are negatively stereotyped as less capable and less committed to their work (Morgan et al., 2013).

Additionally, non-traditional students may also benefit in unique ways (some of which are discussed in later sections, such as due to the added flexibility). In some cases, asynchronous learning levels the playing field by providing fewer status cues and providing some reassurance with some anonymity in the online environment (Hachey, 2017; Melkun, 2012). Thus, students of underrepresented groups may feel more at ease knowing that these environments can reduce the likelihood of encountering microaggressions (subtle or indirect forms of prejudice) tied to identity such as race/ethnicity, gender identity, age, etc. (Sue, 2010).

Community/Comfort

Knapczyk et al. (2005) found that students felt a strong sense of community in asynchronous classes and that students may feel more comfortable expressing themselves in an asynchronous format due to the anonymity it provides (especially for non-traditional students), leading to better dialogues, including among students who may not typically participate in a face-to-face class (Hachey, 2017; Melkun, 2012). Another benefit is that this could lead to increased representation of voices from marginalized groups, who are often hesitant to speak out due to anxiety associated with the risk of being stereotyped, further oppressed, encountering racial gaslighting, or reluctance to offer a counter-perspective that differs from White peers in a predominantly White setting (Fries-Britt & Turner, 2002; Walls & Hall, 2018).

Flexibility

The flexibility provided by an asynchronous course is unequalled in any other learning modality (Pastore et al., 2009). Learners have a great deal of control and flexibility around how and when they complete their learning, which means they can schedule their learning time based on whatever need (work, children) or preference (early birds vs night owls) are relevant to them at that time (and easily adjust if those needs change). This may be especially beneficial to non-traditional students who often have to balance multiple competing responsibilities such as long work hours, being a caretaker for a family member, etc. (Hachey, 2017).

Its convenience also lets students learn to manage their own time (Pastore et al., 2009), which gives them a chance to practice/learn soft skills (time management, etc). They can also develop their autonomy and self-regulation (Vonderwell et al., 2007). By refining their time-management skills and increasing self-reliance, this can lead to greater discipline and work ethic, well-preparing them to enter the workforce when they have completed college.

Deeper, More Reflective Engagement with Content

When learning occurs asynchronously, students have more time to reflect on the content (Driscoll, 1998) which may lead to deeper discussions about the content (Hara et al, 2000). Because of this deeper engagement, as well as problem-solving, and engagement with peers, students are more likely to engage in critical thinking in asynchronous online discussions (De Wever et al., 2010).

With asynchronous learning, this could also encourage students to discuss the course material with someone not enrolled in the class (romantic partner, family member, roommate, etc.) when trying to understand a difficult concept. Engaging with course material more deeply, by elaboration, or making connections to other content through a discussion with another person, facilitates the new information being transferred to long-term memory and is more easily retrieved at a later time (Baddeley, 1997; Craik & Lockhart, 1972). Further, the asynchronous format increases the opportunity to teach the content to a non-expert (again, someone not enrolled in the course), which can also improve understanding; this is because teaching someone requires that we retrieve the information from memory, which we also know improves retention and later recall (Koh et al., 2018; Roediger & Karpicke, 2006).

By removing the opportunity to receive immediate clarification from the course instructor when a question arises, asynchronous learning can also encourage students to independently research a concept and look up additional information independently. Doing so can increase engagement with the material and drive intrinsic motivation to master the information using self-reliance rather than dependence on the instructor. Research has indicated that the more time and effort invested in a task, the greater the value we place on the outcome (Aronson & Mills, 1959). Thus, if students make a greater effort to independently seek clarification when a question arises, this could increase their motivation to obtain high achievement in the course by increasing the perceived value of their learning outcomes.

Motivation

One of the major challenges experienced in any classroom is the lack of student motivation, particularly intrinsic motivation. Pink (2009) proposed that one of the internal drives that help develop greater intrinsic motivation is autonomy- having a sense of control over our work and personal lives. The freedom afforded in asynchronous courses is motivating and may allow students to be more creative as well (Pink, 2009).

Further, motivation to attend synchronous sessions can be difficult, especially in the context of Zoom fatigue (Bailenson, 2021). Therefore, allowing the lecture to be watched when they haven’t been in front of a screen all day or to access sections of the lecture spaced out over time, where learners really do control the pace at which they receive information, is advantageous to students. Past research has also shown that there is a cost to using video such that synchronous zoom-type meetings increase cognitive load (Hinds, 1999). Related, by giving students the option to learn the material in multiple study sessions rather than in one attempt, the spacing effect will likely improve retention of the material by allowing more information to be processed, reflected on, and encoded into long-term memory (Ebbinghaus, 1885).

Conclusion

Although we have focused on benefits for students, there are also benefits for the faculty teaching these courses (see Kennette & Lin, 2021, for a discussion of the benefits of remote work for employees). When employees benefit, it should come to reason that the educational experience can be better for students as well. Of course, not all courses are created equal (regardless of delivery mode), so, much like there can be less effective in-person courses, so too can there be ineffective asynchronous online courses. But in the case of well-designed, asynchronous courses, students do report greater satisfaction and perceived learning, especially when students were more active in the course and had more (asynchronous) interactions with classmates and/or instructors (Swan, 2001). Well-designed online asynchronous courses provide a consistent course structure, not too many modules, frequent interactions with the instructor and other students, and lively discussions (Swan, 2001). In these instances, some research has shown that students tend to prefer to receive information asynchronously rather than synchronously (Cutherell & Lyon, 2007), so for some students, this approach is appreciated.

Regardless of preference, in many cases, asynchronous courses really are the best of both worlds with synchronous meetings possible with faculty or among students, either during virtual office hours or other scheduled times or to work on group projects (see Lowenthal et al., 2017 for some considerations). So, institutions should see asynchronous online classes as a valid approach to education, which may provide opportunities that are valuable to many groups. By expanding learning/classroom formats, higher education can become more accessible to a greater number of learners, increasing equity in society.

References

Antoun, M., Edwards, K. M., Sweeting, J., & Ding, D. (2017). The acute physiological stress response to driving: A systematic review. PLOS ONE 12(10). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0185517

Aronson, E., & Mills, J. (1959). The effect of severity of initiation on liking for a group. The Journal of Abnormal and Social Psychology, 59, 177-181. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/h0047195

Baddeley, A. D. (1997). Human Memory: Theory and Practice. Hove, UK: Psychology Press.

Bailenson, J. N. (2021). Nonverbal overload: A theoretical argument for the causes of Zoom fatigue. Technology, Mind, and Behavior, 2(1). https://doi.org/10.1037/tmb0000030

Craik, F. I. M., & Lockhart, R. S. (1972). Levels of processing: A framework for memory research. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 11, 671-684. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-5371(72)80001-X

CAST (2018). Universal design for learning guidelines version 2.2. http://udlguidelines.cast.org

Cutherell, K., & Lyon, A. (2007). Instructional strategies: What do online students prefer? MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 3(4), 357-362. https://jolt.merlot.org/documents/cuthrell.pdf

De Wever, B., Schellens, T., Valcke, M, & Van Keer, H. (2010). Roles as a structuring tool in online discussion groups: The differential impact of different roles on social knowledge construction. Computers in Human Behavior, 26, 516-523. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2009.08.008

Driscoll, M. (1998). Web-Based Training: Jossey-Bass Publishers.

Ebbinghaus, H. (1885). Über das gedächtnis: untersuchungen zur experimentellen psychologie (Memory: A Contribution to Experimental Psychology): Duncker and Humblot. https://dx.doi.org/10.5214%2Fans.0972.7531.200408

Fries-Britt, S. L. & Turner, B. (2002). Uneven stories: Successful Black collegians at a Black and a White campus. The Review of Higher Education, 25, 315–330. https://doi.org/10.1353/rhe.2002.0012

Hachey, V. K. (2017). Nontraditional student participation in asynchronous online discussions. [Unpublished dissertation]. University of Minnesota.

Hara, N., Bonk, C. J., & Angeli, C. (2000). Content analysis of online discussion in an applied educational psychology course. Instructional Science, 28(2), 115-152. https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1003764722829

Hinds, P. J. (1999). The cognitive and interpersonal costs of video. Media Psychology, 1(4), 283-311. https://doi.org/10.1207/s1532785xmep0104_1

Hoehner, C. M., Barlow, C. E., Allen, P., & Schootman, M. (2012). Commuting distance, cardiorespiratory fitness, and metabolic risk. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 42(6), 571-578. https://dx.doi.org/10.1016%2Fj.amepre.2012.02.020

Kennette, L. N. & Lin, P. S. (2021, June 28). Healthier at home. APS Observer https://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/remote-benefits

Koh, A. W. L., Lee, S. C., & Lim, S. W. H. (2018). The learning benefits of teaching: A retrieval practice hypothesis. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 32(3), 401-410. https://doi.org/10.1002/acp.3410

Lowenthal, P. R., Snelson, C., & Dunlap, J. C. (2017). Live synchronous web meetings in asynchronous online courses: Reconceptualizing virtual office hours. Online Learning, 21(4), 177-194. https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v21i4.1285

Knapczyk, D. R., Frey, T. J., & Wal-Marencik, W. (2005). An evaluation of web conferencing in online teacher preparation. Teacher Education and Special Education, 28(2), 114-124. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F088840640502800205

Melkun, C. H. (2012). Nontraditional students online: Composition, collaboration, and community. Journal of Continuing Higher Education, 60, 33-39. https://doi.org/10.1080/07377363.2012.649128

Morgan, W. B., Walker, S. S., Hebl, M. M. R., & King, E. B. (2013). A field experiment: Reducing interpersonal discrimination toward pregnant job applicants. Journal of Applied Psychology, 98, 799-809. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0034040

Pastore, R., & Carr-Chellman, A. (2009). Motivations for residential students to participate in online courses. Quarterly Review of Distance Education, 10(3), 263-277. Retrieved from http://www.infoagepub.com/quarterly-review-ofdistance-education.html

Pink, D. H. (2009). The surprising truth about what motivates us: Riverhead.

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Sue, D. W. (2010). Microaggressions in everyday life: Race, gender, and sexual orientation. John Wiley & Sons.

Swan, K. (2001). Virtual interaction: Design factors affecting student satisfaction and perceived learning in asynchronous online courses. Distance Education, 22(2), 306-331. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158791010220208

Vonderwell, S., Liang, X, & Alderman, K. (2007) Asynchronous discussions and assessment in online learning. Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 39(3), 309-328. https://doi.org/10.1080/15391523.2007.10782485

Walls, J. K., & Hall, S. S. (2018). A focus group study of African American students’ experiences with classroom discussions about race at a predominantly White university. Teaching in Higher Education, 23, 47-62. https://doi.org/10.1080/13562517.2017.1359158

Wavle, S., & Ozogul, G. (2019). Investigating the impact of online classes on undergraduate degree completion. Online Learning, 23(4), 281-295. https://doi.org/10.24059/olj.v23i4.1558

Using Transformative Experience to Facilitate Authentic Connection in Higher Education

Fri, 19 Nov 2021 20:51:30 GMT

Jacqueline A. Goldman

Oregon State University

One of the best components of the psychology major is its ability to be applied to many other fields and occupations (Gurung et al., 2016) but also its ease of self-reference of material (Dunn et al., 2010). Even though we as educators in this field find this to be obvious, it seems that many of our students struggle seeing the personal and meaningful connections of psychology course material. This lack of meaningful connection or utility value being especially prominent in statistics, research methods, and other high-level courses (Sizemore & Lewandowski, 2009). When many of our psychology majors do not have intentions of going to graduate school in the psychology field, these courses can feel even less relevant for our students (Conroy et al., 2019). At first this may not seem like an issue, as you do not necessarily need to find personal relevance in every piece of content that is learned, but we do know that helping students to find connection in meaningful ways to course content can help them better retain material in the long term (Heddy & Sinatra, 2017; Pugh, 2004) which is arguably the goal in any course. Given Psychology’s self-relevance, it seems that relating course content to students’ every day experiences would be almost second nature, but for many students this does not occur spontaneously (Vansteenkiste et al., 2018). One way we can encourage and facilitate meaningful and personal connection to course content is through a construct called Transformative Experience (TE).

The development of the transformative experience framework came from research by Pugh (2002) who based the construct on John Dewey’s work on learning and aesthetics. Research by Pugh (2011) combined various components of transfer (applying learning to a new task in a new context; Marini & Genereux, 1995), conceptual change (a cognitive reconstruction of knowledge; Dole & Sinatra, 1998), and task value (a students’ belief of the degree to which an academic task is worth pursuing, Wigfield & Eccles, 2000). Thus, a transformative experience, refers to using course content in an everyday experience to see and value the world in new ways (Wong et al., 2001). Within the construct of TE, there are three pieces that need to occur for a true transformative experience to have happened: motivated use, expansion of perception, and experiential value. In essence: students apply concepts to their everyday experience, that then changes the way they see that concept/phenomenon, they then value that concept for its ability to influence their experience, and as a result, their everyday experience is enhanced (for a review see: Pugh, 2011). So, what might that look like in a course setting?

A Demonstration

Let’s look at an example of a student who has a transformative experience with the construct of positive reinforcement within operant conditioning. Motivated use, in this case, refers to the application of course content into a context where it is not required, similar to transfer but without prompting. An example of this would be a student using positive reinforcement to understand why giving their dog a reward for going potty outside increases that behavior. Expansion of perception focuses on the change in that person’s perception or existing schemas being altered by the concept/construct. In this example, our student who used their knowledge of positive reinforcement (giving a reward to increase behavior) to perceive rewarding their dog in terms of the effects of the reinforcement. Before, the student may have given rewards to their dog (or withheld them) without much consideration because they were not aware of the impact on behavior. Now this student sees this everyday even through a different lens because of the course content. Finally, experiential value is the value perceived due to the direct consequence of their motivated use of the construct or content. Back to our example of our student now seeing rewards through the lens of positive reinforcement, they now experience and value their world in new ways due to their experience of using course content in their everyday life. They now are more efficiently potty training their dog and that is valuable because they can increase desired behavior. This entire experience of motivated use, expansion of perception, and experiential value are the necessary components of a transformative experience. The question now becomes, how do we create these opportunities in our classes?

Applying TE in the Classroom

First, I like to lead with the research that demonstrates the advantages of TE. Although its construct creation is still relatively new, the findings associated with facilitating TEs in classroom environments (both K12 and higher ed) have demonstrated clear benefits (Heddy & Sinatra, 2017; Heddy et al., 2017; Pugh et al., 2010). Previous research in STEM courses found that engagement in TE was related to increased interest and perceived instrumentality (Pugh et al., 2017); TE engagement generated positive affect and interest in social studies education (Alongi et al., 2016); and contributed to scientific conceptual change and academic achievement (Heddy & Sinatra, 2013). Several methods have emerged regarding how to elicit TE within classrooms. I will discuss the most common methods: the Teaching for Transformative Experience in Science (TTES) model and the Use Change Value (UCV) discussions. Both methods are effective but have varying amounts of educator and class time requirements. In a perfect world we would use the most successful interventions in our courses, but as educators we must balance what is feasible and what is effective given class time restrictions.

TTES

The TTES model was developed in 2010 by Pugh and colleagues and has ample evidence of having been effective in inspiring TE within classroom settings (Alongi et al., 2016; Heddy et al., 2017). This model includes three general components: framing the content in terms of its experiential value, scaffolding re-seeing, and modeling transformative experiences. These components are to be modeled by the instructor and are to be conducted during class time.

Framing the content is specifically having the instructor refer to content in terms of its value and ability to enrich everyday experience. This can be done through discussing the immediate usefulness of the content in everyday life, or simply conveying the purpose of learning this content to enrich daily experience. This can be in terms of their immediate experience (using positive reinforcement to increase desired behavior) or even in reflecting on previous experiences.

Scaffolding re-seeing refers to going beyond your current perception of everyday events and objects and seeing them through the lens of a new construct or idea. By scaffolding re-seeing, the instructor is providing structure and effort to help students perceive everyday objects in their own experiences through the lens of the course content. For instance, using classical conditioning to discuss why we might respond to hearing a text message ‘ding’ in public, when it’s not our own phone. By providing these examples and coaching their re-seeing, you can then have students share examples of their own re-seeing of everyday objects and events and give feedback to guide their experiences.

Finally, modeling of transformative experience is just as simple as it sounds. Within class, take the opportunity to share your own personal experiences of TE and how you have applied curricular content in your own everyday life and how you have used it to re-see the world. This should also include expressions of how this has led to a developed interest and experiential valuing of the content. Although this model has been adapted into various courses and contexts with benefits of increased conceptual change, and higher levels of TE (Alongi et al., 2016; Heddy & Sinatra, 2013) it does require extensive class time use as well as hands on scaffolding and feedback from the instructor which is a major shortcoming.

UCV Discussions

Noticing the need for a TE intervention that took up less course time, but still allowed for scaffolding of student TEs research by Heddy et al., (2017) developed a small group discussion format called Use Change and Value discussions. The UCV acronym aligns with the three components of TE (Use – motivated use, Change – expansion of perception, and Value – experiential value) and most of the work happens outside of the classroom with less peer and instructor feedback than with the TTES model. Originally the UCV discussions had students keep journals where they wrote out responses to the UCV prompts: 1) Discuss how you saw an example of course content in your everyday life (Use) 2) Discuss how seeing that content in your real-life experience has changed how you see that topic (Change) 3) Discuss why that experience was/is valuable to you (Value). Students would then bring these experiences back to the classroom and would take some class time to share their TEs with their peers and instructors to receive feedback and scaffolding. These discussions took a fraction of the time that the TTES model did and allowed for peer feedback on their experiences as well. Research using this format had been successful in facilitating higher levels of TE, interest, and academic performance compared to students who did not use UCV discussions (Heddy et al., 2017). Since previous research has also demonstrated a positive connection between TE and task values such as intrinsic, utility, and attainment value (Goldman et al., 2021) it seems no surprise that engagement in TE can be beneficial beyond just engagement.

Further, UCV discussions can be formatted in a journal/weekly discussion format to have students continually be thinking about how the content is related to their own experiences and how events in their own life can be explained through course constructs. This method may be more appropriate for online courses, adding an additional benefit of allowing students to provide examples from their own lives. This can bring a further connection to the course through autonomy of choosing what to write about as well as relatedness in sharing personal experiences, which can be an obstacle in online courses.

References

Alongi, M. D., Heddy, B. C., & Sinatra, G. M. (2016). Real-world engagement with controversial issues in history and social studies: Teaching for transformative experiences and conceptual change. Journal of Social Science Education, 15(2) 26-41. https://doi.org/10.4119/jsse-791

Conroy, J., Christidis, P., Fleischmann, M., & Lin, L. (2019, September). Datapoint: How many psychology majors go on to graduate school? Monitor on Psychology, 50(8). http://www.apa.org/monitor/2019/09/datapoint-grad-school

Dole, J. A., & Sinatra, G. M. (1998). Reconceptualizing change in the cognitive construction of knowledge. Educational Psychologist, 33(2-3), 109–128. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15326985ep3302&3_5

Dunn, D. S., Brewer, C. L., Cautin, R. L., Gurung, R. A. R., Keith, K. D., McGregor, L. N., Nida, S. A., Puccio, P., & Voigt, M. J. (2010). The undergraduate psychology curriculum: Call for a core. In D. F. Halpern (Ed.), Undergraduate education in psychology: A blueprint for the future of the discipline (pp. 47–61). American Psychological Association. https://doi.org/10.1037/12063-003

Heddy, B. C., & Sinatra, G. M. (2013). Transforming misconceptions: Using transformative experience to promote positive affect and conceptual change in students learning about biological evolution. Science Education, 97(5), 723–744. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21072

Heddy, B. C., & Sinatra, G. M. (2017). Transformative parents: Facilitating transformative experiences and interest with a parent involvement intervention. Science Education, 101(5), 765–86.https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.21292

Heddy, B. C., Sinatra, G. M., Seli, H., Taasoobshirazi, G., & Mukhopadhyay, A. (2017). Making learning meaningful: Facilitating interest development and transfer in at-risk college students. Educational Psychology, 37(5), 565-581. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/01443410.2016.1150420

Marini, A., & Genereux, R. (1995). The challenge of teaching for transfer. In A. McKeough, J.L. Lupart, & A. Marini (Eds.), Teaching for transfer: Fostering generalization in learning (pp. 1–19). New York, NY: Routledge

Pugh, K. J. (2002). Teaching for transformative experiences in science: An investigation of the effectiveness of two instructional elements. Teachers College Record, 104(6), 1101–1137. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-9620.00198.

Pugh, K. J. (2004). Newton’s laws beyond the classroom walls. Science Education, 88(2), 182– 196. https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.10109.

Pugh, K. J., Linnenbrink-Garcia, L., Koskey, K. L. K., Stewart, V. C., & Manzey, C. (2010). Motivation, learning, and transformative experience: A study of deep engagement in science. Science Education, 94(1), 1–28. https://DOI:10.1002/sce.20344

Pugh, K. J. (2011). Transformative experience: An integrative construct in the spirit of Deweyan pragmatism. Educational Psychologist, 46(2), 107–121. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2011.558817.

Pugh, K. J., Bergstrom, C. M., Heddy, B. C., & Krob, K. E. (2017). Supporting deep engagement: The Teaching for Transformative Experiences in Science (TTES) model. Journal of Experimental Education, 85(4), 629–657. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220973.2016.1277333

Sizemore, O. J., & Lewandowski, G.W. (2009). Learning might not equal liking: Research methods course changes knowledge but not attitudes. Teaching of Psychology, 36, 90–95. https://doi.org/10.1080/00986280902739727.

Vansteenkiste, M., Aelterman, N., De Muynck, G.-J., Haerens, L., Patall, E., & Reeve, J. (2018). Fostering personal meaning and self-relevance: A self-determination theory perspective on internalization. Journal of Experimental Education, 86(1), 30–49.https://doi.org/10.1080/00220973.2017.1381067

Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2000). Expectancy–value theory of achievement motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25(1), 68-81. https://doi.org/10.1006/ceps.1999.1015

Wong, E. D., Pugh, K. J., & the Dewey Ideas Group at Michigan State University. (2001). Learning science: A Deweyan perspective. Journal of Research on Science Teaching, 38, 317-336. https://doi.org/10.1002/1098-2736(200103)38:3%3C317::AID-TEA1008%3E3.0.CO;2-9

Teaching While Black: Identity Navigation in Academia

Wed, 06 Oct 2021 19:36:28 GMT

Gabrielle P.A. Smith, PhD

Texas Woman’s University (TWU) 

I, like most academics, was anxious as I prepared for my first day of teaching. I agonized about everything, from my outfit, to the lesson plan. I questioned what my teaching persona would be, and if my students would like me. Did I even want them to like me, can like and respect coexist? I hoped my first day would go off without a hitch, I was not prepared for a run in with a colleague to be a precursor for the navigation of Blackness in the professoriate.

“What will you do with your hair” – this from an airy voice in the hallway waiting for the copier. “Excuse me?” I asked, taken aback as this tiny voice was referencing my Teeny-Weeny Afro (TWA). I did not know how to respond. I had considered how most white students in a college town in Alabama would navigate my Blackness but had not even considered a change in my appearance.

“What do you mean? Are you changing your hair or something?” – I decided a matter-of-fact statement was best suited for this copy room ambush. Stuttering ensued, and with a face two shades redder, my peer stammered out a sentence akin to “I just thought you might straighten it or something; I heard of people doing that for important things.”

Important things.

Black woman’s hair, accents (specifically from Spanish speakers, Asian people, and residents from the South), attire for LGBTQIA folx and Muslim people, and people with names deemed “hard to pronounce” are some of the aspects of identity often policed in academia (Boustani & Taylor, 2020; García-Bullé, 2019; Syed, 2020). Despite sitting in the ivory tower researching and offering insight into the discriminatory practices outside of the academy, we are not very apt at looking inward.

Recently a slew of online communities began discussing the idea of Black women’s natural hair being deemed as unworthy of special occasions or professional spaces (Inman, 2021). Discussions about Black women’s hair are everywhere, from the CROWN ACT (a movement to prohibit race-based discrimination against Black hair in the US workplace and academic spaces) and embracing natural hair and even talks about respectability politics concerning the use of bonnets in public (Johnson, 2017; Official CROWN ACT; Pitcan, Marwick, Boyd, 2018). Even now, as we prepare for the Olympics, ShaCarri Richardson’s hair is a topic of conversation, reminiscent (albeit more positively), of the way Gabby Douglas' hair was scrutinized (Gillespie, 2020; Inman, 2021). The policing of Black women’s hair was not new or novel. However, at that juncture of my career (2012), conversations about Black women’s hair were not as public or progressive. Most of my conversations about my hair happened with other Black women, however, these conversations did not include interactions with people I considered friends. Thus, my understanding of the navigation of my hair in my academic world on an interpersonal level was not that accessible.

In my two years at the University, no one had seen me with straight hair. The last time I straightened my hair was my last semester of undergrad at Spelman College. I had no desire, then or now, to straighten my hair. However, the message seemed clear, straight hair equals professional hair; the way my hair grew from my head did not. I wish I could say that I followed up with an eloquent, informative, and quotable takedown, but I cannot. I stated that “I do not straighten my hair for anyone or anything besides myself.” I ended the conversation there. Later, I broached the topic of my hair as a point of dialogue in a discussion in the Teaching of Psychology, a required course on teaching for all graduate student teachers, including me. The Teaching of Psychology professor was extraordinary and led us a transparent conversation that everyone in the space needed to hear.

However, that experience made me realize that I was ill-prepared for this side of the academic journey. I was aware that many people expected professors to be older tall white men. I was none of those things, and as a young, Black woman standing under 5 feet, I expected not to fit the mold. However, I was not prepared for the willingness of others to openly express their desire for me to tweak myself to squeeze into this ill-fit model. Professional expectations in the corporate world were well established, but the academic sphere only mentioned tweed jackets and rim-framed glasses. Induced assimilation in a career path frequently touted as aligned with freedom and agency was jarring. Also, as a graduate of a historically Black college, almost every Black professor I knew rocked natural hair unapologetically.

While my TWA has grown and expanded throughout my time teaching, the need to navigate my personal racial identity alongside my professional identity has remained constant both inside and outside of the classroom. I often teach courses that either center (e.g., The Psychology of the African American Experience) or engage Blackness (Global Perspectives) in ways that highlight my race more than other courses in the field. Classroom interactions vary widely based on course content and the identities that are salient to the course.

Being Black in the front of a classroom that discusses Blackness is different from being white or any other racial or ethnic group teaching the same topic. Words such as race and diversity are interpreted as Black when they leave my lips. Even when I express that diversity is intersectional and allows space for an array of lived experiences, the follow-up is always an expectation of a bias toward racial issues that will impact my teaching (Crenshaw, 2013; Dill, 2009; Icaza Garza & Vázquez, 2017).

Most of the focus on identity in the classroom is centered around navigating this for undergraduate students and not how to navigate it for graduate students, staff, or faculty. Further, our conversations about navigating identity in the classroom often center on students’ personal identities and those immediately around them. While the emphasis on student identity is essential, it is not the complete picture. Identity is relevant even outside of the classroom. In other campus spaces, the identities of all involved parties: teaching assistants, lecturers, professors, department chairs, provosts, presidents, administrative assistants, housing staff, facilities staff, and all other campus entities impact the social environment of our academic spaces. These identities are often not considered; however, they can and must be examined when advocating for diverse and inclusive spaces. Even the climate off-campus, in the surrounding social spaces of our campuses, are imperative environments to consider. Everything in our social environment bleeds into the classroom, including experiences informed by our societal position. Thus, we need to be proactive and consider the environment both within and outside our classroom doors.

If we want to create diverse and inclusive campuses, we need to make sure that we are actively attending to the needs of all campus members. Honestly, we need to be thinking beyond the classroom and attending to identity in all campus spaces. Are you examining the entire campus for areas of improvement concerning diversity? Are we asking questions about inclusivity and belonging concerning the library and the cafeteria? Are we assessing the makeup of our diversity committees and task force and ensuring these loads are not disproportionately distributed to faculty, staff, and students of a few demographics? Do we have diversity and diversity-related initiatives, but are they only regulated to certain areas of campus? Is the institutional rationale for diversity inclusive, or does it center on the educational benefits of students in the majority a critical benefit of diversification (Starck, Sinclair, & Shelton, 2021)? What are the local politics, and how do they impact our campus community? Are some campus members having to navigate belonging on campus and navigation of identity-relevant issues off-campus?

As a Black woman from the US South, a Social Psychologist, recently promoted to Associate Professor, who has issues with mobility and identifies in a multitude of other ways; I should be tapped to do things both related and unrelated to diversity issues. My colleagues who do not identify as Black, Indigenous, or a person of color, disabled, women, who identify as cis-gendered and heterosexual, and are privileged in various other ways (e.g., language) should also be engaged in diversity work. Every demographic is needed to ensure that our spaces are diverse, and diversity should not be a buzzword or call to action for historically underrepresented groups. The invisible labor expected of those often excluded from academic spaces is unwarranted. It contributes to preconceived notions when someone who looks like me or others with diverse salient identities steps in front of a classroom. The labor should be shared, but often it is not. Thus, the social categorization and social bias of Black professors, staff with disabilities, Latinx students, Muslim administrators, etc., are socially constructed by the campus environment and how we regulate diversity issues to certain departments and specific people (Author Unknown, 2017; García-Bullé, 2019). It is not enough to embrace diversity and increase the numbers; there must be concrete actions to ensure that the needs of all members of the community are assessed and addressed.

As stated by Toni Morrison, “When you get these jobs that you have been so brilliantly trained for, just remember that your real job is that if you are free, you need to free somebody else. If you have some power, then your job is to empower somebody else. This is not just a grab-bag candy game.” Reviewing our campus community and ensuring that it is accessible, welcoming, and inclusive to all, even those we disagree with, is imperative to true diversity. Dedication to diversity should be all-encompassing, it is everyone’s job, and the definition of diversity should always be defined broadly.Page Break

References

Author Unknown (2017). Social Categorization in the Classroom. PSYCH 424 blog. Retrieved from https://sites.psu.edu/aspsy/2017/04/02/social-categorization-in-the-classroom/

Boustani, K., & Taylor, K. A. (2020). Navigating LGBTQ+ discrimination in academia: Where do we go from here? The Biochemist, 42(3), 16-20. https://10.1042/BIO20200024

Crenshaw, K.(2013)Mapping the Margins: Intersectionality, Identity Politics, and Violence Against Women of Color’. Stanford Law Review, 43, 1241-1300.

Dill, Bonnie Thorton (2009) “Intersections, Identities, and Inequalities in Higher Education”, in B. T. Dill and R. Zambrana, eds. Emerging Intersections: Race, Class, and Gender in Theory, Policy and Practice. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, pp. 229-252.

García-Bullé, S. (2019). The Accent as a Basis for Prejudice in Academia. Observatory of Educational Innovation. Retrieved from: https://observatory.tec.mx/edu-news/accent-academia

Gillespie, C. (2020). Gabby Douglas reveals bald spots from years of wearing ponytails: 'I was so embarrassed'. Health.com. https://www.health.com/beauty/hair/gabby-douglas-natural-hair

Icaza Garza, R.A, & Vázquez, R. (2017). Intersectionality and Diversity in Higher Education. Tijdschrift voor Orthopedagogiek, 7/8, 349–357. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/1765/103271.

Inman, D. (2021). 5 things you should know about olympian Sha’Carri Richardson. Retrieved from https://www.vibe.com/news/sports/shacarri-richardson-things-to-know-1234621567/

Johnson. Desiree (2017). .Do you feel pressured to straighten your hair for formal events? NaturallyCurly.com. https://www.naturallycurly.com/curlreading/curl-products/the-pressure-to-straighten-your-hair-for-formal-events-do-you-give-in

Official CROWN Act. The Official CROWN Act. https://www.thecrownact.com/home

Pitcan, M., Marwick, A. E., & Boyd, D. (2018). Performing a vanilla self: Respectability politics, social class, and the digital world. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication, 23(3), 163-179. https://10.1093/jcmc/zmy008

Starck, J. G., Sinclair, S., & Shelton, J. N. (2021). How university diversity rationales inform

student preferences and outcomes. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 118(16), e2013833118. https://10.1073/pnas.2013833118

Syed, A. (2020). Hijabi students navigate the discussion around wearing hijab in academia. Retrieved from: https://dailybruin.com/2020/09/26/hijabi-students-navigate-the-discussion-around-wearing-hijab-in-academia

Young, D. (2016). The definition, danger and disease of respectability politics, explained. The Root. Retrieved from https://www.theroot.com/the-definition-danger-and-disease-of-respectability-po-1790854699.

Writing is Teaching

Mon, 06 Sep 2021 18:50:46 GMT

Gary W. Lewandowski, Jr.

Monmouth University

Teaching is easily my favorite part of being a professor. If this past year has taught us anything, it’s that the modalities and ways we teach are constantly shifting, often back-and-forth more than a few times. Although the “how” of our teaching has changed, the “why” remains the same: to support and educate our students in ways that help them improve their lives.

Pandemic teaching has been a reminder that teaching takes many forms, many of which lie beyond the classroom walls. Early in my career, at an SPSP Teaching Preconference, I had the pleasure of seeing David Myers give a talk where he made a simple suggestion: Writing is a form of teaching. It stuck with me. Suddenly writing became a lot more appealing.

Whether you’re crafting a journal article’s introduction, a chapter, a book, or a blog post, writing in a clear and engaging style determines your ideas’ usefulness. Yet, despite writing being such an essential skill, we don’t discuss it nearly enough.

Lately, it’s practically all I think about. Over the past 2 years, I’ve been immersed in writing a trade book (Stronger Than You Think: The 10 Blind Spots That Undermine Your Relationship…and How to See Past Them), revising my research methods textbook, and editing a book on the self in relationships. To keep my head above water during that time, I’ve learned a lot about how to be a better and more efficient writer.

I wish I had learned it a lot sooner. Hopefully I can help make your writing journey a little less bumpy than mine by offering a few new insights, or at least some helpful reminders.

It takes time. I’m not sure it’s a Gladwellian 10,000 hours, but improvement in anything requires that you put in the reps. Writing is no exception. These days, I write a lot. Every day. Often a couple hours a day. (No one would be more surprised to hear that than my graduate school self.) But it helps. As they say, writers are made and not born. In my case, writing more has made me a better writer. It has gotten easier, but…

It’s never easy. If you’re waiting for the moment where perfect sentences naturally and easily flow through you, I hope you’re patient. The fact is, conveying ideas clearly on the page (or screen) is unbelievably difficult. Achieving clarity is a process. It doesn’t mean that you’re a bad writer, just that writing is hard. Fun fact: Some of these sentences are my fifth try, none are my first. Still, most aren’t quite as polished as I’d like. Writing forces you to put your perfectionism aside.

Be a professional. Writing is essential to your career success. Respect it. Professionals show up, put in the hours, and commit to getting better. Build your skills by reading books on being a better writer. You likely know about Strunk & White, but also check out William Zinsser’s On Writing Well. Read it, refer to it, practice it. Reviewer 2 adeptly rips apart parts of your manuscript, but you rarely get line edits designed to improve your writing’s clarity. Find someone who writes better than you and get their feedback. I’m also big believer in the BIC (Butt-In-Chair) method. Carve out a set time each day to sit and write at the time of day you’re most productive. Put it in your schedule. I start with 30 minutes and if I’m feeling it, I keep going. If not, I work on something else guilt-free.

What “counts”? Here’s the trick: I almost never work on something else because I count LOTS of activities as writing. Too often we only think of writing as clean ready-for-publication paragraphs. That’s setting the bar way too high. Instead, I consider all of these “writing”: brainstorming ideas, reading articles, taking notes, outlining, writing out key sentences, revising previous drafts, and writing first drafts. Counting more activities allows me to build the habit and maintain momentum.

Writing pipeline and “sloppy copies.” Like a research pipeline, having several things in your writing pipeline makes it easier to have lots of things “count.” The hardest most intimidating draft is the first one. Take the sting out of it by only committing to a “sloppy copy” that is full of typos, missing citations, and barely understandable sentences. Get crazy, make some APA style errors too. The important thing is to get your ideas down in an uninhibited way. You could also do this via voice-to-text. Whatever it takes to get started. If you’re not ready for that on a particular day, the other pieces in the “pipeline” are there to revise. Besides, all good writing comes from revising.

Do it on deadline. Whether you’re the “pressure makes diamonds” type or not, a little time blocking is helpful. I don’t know about you, but as a hopelessly overscheduled academic and parent, large chunks of time are hard to find. (I’m currently writing this in a dark parking lot while my daughter is at softball practice.) In other words, don’t wait for the perfect conditions. Just write. Even when I have more time during regular writing sessions, I force a little artificial time pressure. Perhaps you’re familiar with the Pomodoro technique where you work for small chunks and take frequent breaks. I use something similar of my own creation: the classic vinyl technique. I have a record player in my office and commit to writing for one side of a record (which is about 20-25 minutes). Flipping the record requires a mini-break that helps punctuate my screen time, and if I want to keep listening to the record I have to keep writing. (As I revise this, I'm currently listening to Jimi Hendrix Are You Experienced? It’s awesome.)

Read. I’m also a believer in reading “counting” as a writing activity. Reading is like maintenance run that allows you to keep your writing fitness, without the pressure of a more strenuous writing session. It’s also the cheapest writing coach you can find. When looking for things to read, pick something light. If you must do non-fiction, choose something outside of your research area and ideally not a journal article. Seek out good writing outside of academia wherever you can find it. A stellar recent example is Amanda Gorman’s “The Hill We Climb.” It’s a masterclass on using language, word choice, rhythm, and delivery. It’s clear, cogent, and captivating. Just like good teaching.

Parting Thoughts

Certainly these suggestions aren’t “one size fits all”, but I hope they fit most. If you’re skeptical about some aspects, engage in little rugged empiricism and give it a try. You never know what might click.

We often refer to ourselves as “teacher-scholars.” Remember that when we do, teacher comes first. As a teacher, the students come first. As a writer, the readers come first. It’s our job to write in a way that draw readers in and allows our ideas to reach as many people as possible. The APA wants us to “give psychology away” which “means sharing the broad benefits that psychological science and expertise have to offer in order to enhance society and improve the lives of others.” We do that when we teach, and we can do it when we write.

What do students want post-pandemic?

Tue, 03 Aug 2021 03:52:48 GMT

Kara Sage

The College of Idaho

One morning back in February, amidst the start of a spring semester teaching all online, one of the librarians at my college emailed me. He wanted to chat about how students were feeling about the increased reliance on technology in their daily lives on our small liberal arts campus. Though it is no secret that today’s college students are often attached to their technology, the circumstances of the pandemic and online education had required a new type of screen use over the past year. Screen use that was not voluntarily chosen. Screen use that crept into all aspects of their lives. Screen use that was exhausting.

We chatted back and forth for quite some time, with me interjecting a variety of thoughts and ideas from my perspective as a professor and researcher of media psychology. Throughout the ebb and flow of our conversation, my increasing realization was that students sat in a somewhat odd digital space at this moment in time. With so much screen use thrust upon them over the last year, they had simultaneously become more reliant on their screens for daily functioning while also feeling more and more burnt out by their screen use. Hints of these juxtaposing experiences and emotions were often evident in my virtual classes; they desired to break free of their screens and finally get outside, see people, and mingle, but the current context prevented them from fully doing so.

As we neared the end of this unanticipated year online together, the moment seemed ripe to reflect and consider the future together. Inspired by my conversation with the librarian a few months prior, I decided to toss one of my class’ usual term projects out the window. Instead, I wanted to create a meaningful active learning experience for students that would speak to this moment in time.

Together we reflected on our experiences with education during the pandemic. It was clear that my students had the end of the pandemic in sight. First and foremost, they very much wanted to see faces again. They were often tired of starring at little circles on a virtual call as opposed to being with actual people in a classroom. They recognized that online learning had its place as well, but they missed the close-knit community that characterized the small residential college that they had chosen to attend. They worried about their peers too. Maybe half of their peers had never even stepped foot on campus. They also repeatedly referred to the desire to reactivate student-mode for fall semester. Many habits had developed over the last year that they would need to undo, such as waking up just a few minutes before class or doing laundry during class. Students worried about complacency in their study habits, noting the need for a stricter schedule and better time management. That said, they also thought that some of the digital tools they had learned were neat. They had some concerns that they’d never be used again, and all of our time becoming more online learning-savvy would be for naught.

Following their reflections, I posed our next step: let us design interventions, activities, and policies together that could help our campus when we return for fall semester. In small teams, students brainstormed, collaborated, and designed what proved to be a sound list of suggestions for fall semester. It became clear that what is required for fall semester is a systematic approach to rebuilding a sense of community on campus. Such efforts needed to be campus-wide and involve all constituencies – students, staff, and faculty. I mentioned earlier the pairing of screen reliance with feelings of burnout. Agreeably, student initiatives often reflected their attempts to reduce problematic screen use habits. Paired with pandemic-related behaviors like quarantining, students felt that the negative effects of their reliance on the screen had been exacerbated throughout the year. As one example, they had not been able to bond with other students as closely. That said, they often also spoke to the fact that we needed to not just throw our newly acquired digital skills and apps out with the bathwater. Reflecting a good moral from media psychology, they emphasized that we could reap benefits when we had the just-right amount of technology in our lives.

Below, I share some of the ideas and initiatives inspired by our class conversations and projects. Ultimately, it is the responsibility of all colleges and universities to actively take steps to help students transition back to campus life, recognizing that we can’t just step right back into old patterns from almost 1 ½ years ago. Many students weren’t even our students then. We must have a plan in place to build a welcoming, inclusive environment and set our new normal.

Offer welcome back events. These initial welcome back events are more important than ever. They help students to meet people, get acquainted with campus, unplug from screens, and connect to campus life. Some activities can encourage student bonding and collaboration from day one, such as campus scavenger hunts and intramural sports. Other options can encourage students to connect with new activities or like-minded others, such as booths advertising different clubs or lunch tables organized by hobbies. And yet additional activities can represent the unprecedented, shared experience we just had, such as faculty or staff-led forums emphasizing how to rebuild study habits and maintain mental health.
Build student and faculty connections. Activities similar to speed dating could help facilitate quick get-to-know-you introductions on campus to meet new people and avoid potentially awkward introductions after such a long time apart. A student-student circle, with students rotating to the next seat every few minutes, would help students quickly get to know some of their peers. A faculty-student circle conducted in the same manner could help both students and faculty get to know each other before the first day of class.
Spend the first day of class building community. The first day will be an adjustment in so many ways. It has been a significant amount of time since most students and faculty were in the physical classroom. Spend the day getting to know each other. Do icebreakers. Place students into study groups that they can work with throughout the entire semester. Consider setting up office hours visits to chat with the professor, either as individuals or in small groups.
Have a technology policy and use new digital tools positively. Given the increased use of screens over the past year, having a technology policy in place will help remind students of their expected use in learning and the classroom. But students and faculty also just invested a lot of time into learning new digital tools. In our case, we mastered Microsoft Teams as a virtual learning and conversational platform and encouraged use of supplemental tools like PollEverywhere and Kahoot for participation. Plan for positive use of these tools for learning, such as to complement exam review, conduct student surveys, or hold virtual office hours in off-hours.

Consider more flexibility and active learning when planning your class. Any adjustment comes with its own challenges. Recognizing that this time WILL be an adjustment is key. Students are transitioning back to campus life, and lingering effects of the pandemic are still in play. Thus, extra flexibility in terms of attendance or late assignment policies or similar may benefit the classroom environment. Students also haven’t had the chance to have in-person discussions or move around with others in the classroom in some time. Incorporate active learning into your semester’s activities.
Encourage mental health awareness. Life has been stressful and traumatic for some. Students will need time to readjust. Consider on-campus seminars on mental health topics. Consider syllabus statements that recognize mental health and connect students with resources. Consider activities like meditation, therapy dogs, and yoga across the semester. Consider continuing to offer virtual mental health services on top of in-person services. And, importantly, don’t simply ignore that this past year and a half has been a mental struggle.

The pandemic undoubtedly increased stress for many students and will have ripple effects for some time to come in as-yet undefined ways. When we welcome our students back to our institutions in the fall, we must address that the time is now different. Let’s listen to our students. Let’s build our new community. Together, we can move forward.

Enhancing online engagement: If you build it, will they come?

Thu, 08 Jul 2021 18:13:13 GMT

Crissa Levin (Utah State )

Distance learning is becoming increasingly common, both in response to the pandemic and in normal years (Seaman et al., 2018). This modality brings additional challenges, particularly with retention and engagement (Bart, 2012). Research on distance learning provides clues, however it can also be useful to look also at the related field of computerized psychoeducation interventions, as these are ultimately a different form of teaching online. This form of distance teaching receives far more research attention (including funding), and therefore can be useful in decoding the mystery of student engagement.

Below I will present a model for engagement in online teaching based on research and experience that is broken down into three overlapping areas: Micro-Studies, which are ultimately the student’s assignments; Micro-coaching, which is basically how you can build motivation enhancement into the communications that you’re having with your students already; and Information itself, which in this brief version of the model will refer to lectures and how this necessary aspect can still be essential even though they can feel unengaging in online modalities.

Micro-Studies

Assignments can be conceptualized as little studies, where the outcome is like the dependent variable (and construct validity matters). The independent variable is what you are teaching, and it’s worth thinking about – is the course content lined up with the course assessments in such a way that you can really differentiate the learning from the course? So far, all of this is entirely relevant in both in-person and online classes, and is not an original idea (Masland, 2019). However, what is particularly relevant for the web-based environment is communicating this thinking to students. Student motivation is increased by letting students know why exactly they are doing this assignment and what it is trying to measure (Tyler-Smith, 2006). So the first step of importance here is to think through every step of a micro-study, and the second step is to include this information in simple terms as part of the instructions to students.

One example of where this is particularly important in online teaching is the regular use of discussions. We know that it is useful to have regular interaction between peers in online classrooms (Mbukusa, 2017; Akcaoglu & Lee 2016), but it is common to see discussions lead to a sea of responses stating some form or another of “I agree,” which really is the prototypical example of a lack of online engagement. An alternative might be to instead start with the outcome and work backwards. What would you like the students to prove they are able to do?

In one of my courses, I described the setup for a behavioral problem, and asked each student to describe how they would use the current chapter to develop an intervention. The catch was, they only had 4 sentences for their intervention, which meant the intervention would be definitively incomplete. Students were required to respond with more information to another student’s post, ultimately adding on to another student’s intervention. Because they were being trained in various behavioral interventions (IV) the outcome was how effective they were at applying these interventions (DV). This also met the goal of student interaction online, but did so in a meaningful way, and students got to know each other and interact weekly while still actively applying content.

Micro-Coaching

Among the most important things to keep students engaged and motivated in an online course, both in my experience and based on a variety of studies, is to bring oneself to the online class (Dennen, et al., 2007). This can mean anything from being genuine about your own self and life in your announcements, to not trying to cover imperfections, to ensuring that there is a person and voice in your feedback and, as regularly as is feasible, for your own instructor role. This has great meaning for students and is particularly important to helping students stay connected with the content and the course.

Reviewing the literature, it starts to feel like engagement interventions for online teaching (and web-based psychological interventions) center around the same tenants as those of Person-Centered Therapy. Beyond genuineness lies positive regard and empathy. It is beyond the scope of the current writing to detail how and why these skills play well within an online context, but one simplification is that students who take online classes are demographically different than students who take in-person classes. Two primary differences between the groups are age and working status – our online students tend to be working adults who are juggling full lives and fit school in between the cracks (Johnson, 2015; Ortangus, 2017). Through this lens, it becomes much simpler to have respect, warmth, and empathy for our students even when on the surface it might in other contexts seem they are not trying. This change in how we relate to our students when we are already spending time giving feedback and providing information can make a substantial difference with regards to which students tend to stay and engage.

In one example of how I use micro-coaching in my courses, I have created a jingle (song) to go with my weekly video announcements. I give my weekly announcements off-the-cuff, with only an outline of notes to guide what I will be discussing. I do not edit the content, and instead poke fun at my own mistakes. This is not only because it is familiar to many students to see raw and genuine video, and is not at all actually because of the time savings; this is to help students connect, and to see me as a real person who is really telling them about the week. And while the course data does suggest that some people do not watch regularly, or some people skip around, there are other reports of people who watch with their spouses every week or notice when the announcements are late.

Information

It has become common to hear online lectures get a bad reputation, with many comedians joking during the pandemic that online teaching is simply no better than watching YouTube or Ted Talks. That does not match with either the data or with my experience. There is evidence that students do tend to lose attention after a certain amount of time, however I have yet to see a comparison regarding this group-level attention check in online lectures and in-person lectures. An alternate interpretation of this evidence can simply be: many students do zone out during lectures, and this might be even worse online – especially in longer videos. What’s missing from the discussion that shorter lecture videos are essential is how incredibly essential it is for the genuine presence of the instructor to break down the material in the context of the course, in lecture format (Brown et al., 2016). In a far less-scientific way, I have also consistently found through internal surveys that students select lectures as the first or second most useful assignment in each online class I’ve taught over the last seven years. That said, everyone who worked during 2020 had our fair share of zoom burnout and became familiar with how hard it would be to consume information if it was delivered in the same format as in-person lectures. So what becomes important then may be to recognize that while lectures are essential, to be successful online, they ought to be made into micro-studies and ought to use some micro-coaching to combat the increasing problems with engagement.

To use micro-coaching and micro-studies in my lectures, I first am sure to be genuine, and to “bring myself” to my lectures. I often tell stories about my own life at times that I’m trying to convey examples. To make these lectures into micro-studies, I started with the outcome, and determined that simple attention to the content (simple reiteration) was the DV, with an added goal of reinforcing “showing up” if possible. So, I focus on the outcome of attention and memory to what was just said. To do this, I pause the lectures at key times using lecture interaction software (I use Kaltura, but many are available), and it asks a question that is meant only to ask how to re-state content that was said at some time over the last several minutes. The questions are spaced out and intentionally simple, which focuses on attention but also helps to reinforce “showing up” as opposed to punishing drifting off (that which naturally occurs). This slight change in focus shifts students out of multiple patterns, including zoning out after a few minutes. This occurs because of playing to the modality of the online medium. By helping students to keep their attention between questions, because they don’t know which part of the lecture will be important for the simple question coming up, this helps to keep students attending. By bringing myself – by being genuine and showing up in each lecture of the semester, there’s a steady and stable presence throughout the semester that allows for connection in the course, and keeps students connected not only to the content, but to the instructor.

Conclusion

Ultimately, it is much more time-intensive to teach online courses than in-person courses. This is due to the editing time that is avoided by just showing up in-person, due to the motivational coaching needed for the different modality itself, but also for the different types of students that find their way to online courses. This time comes from putting a lot of yourself into the course as well – to adding to your feedback the little comments that let your students know you’re a person, maybe one who laughs and sees good in people and their work. This all can be quite time intensive. And because of this differential time impact, matched with the loss of smiling faces and interactions unless something is wrong. It might not be for everyone, but I find it useful to remember that we are reaching a different set of students, in a more challenging environment, and providing the same promise of education. It’s a tall order and a meaningful one, and that challenge can be rewarding.Page Break

References

Akcaoglu, M., & Lee, E. (2016). Increasing social presence in online learning through small group discussions. The international review of research in open and distributed learning, 17(3). https://doi.org/10.19173/irrodl.v17i3.2293

Bart, M. (2012). Online student engagement tools and strategies. Faculty Focus. Retrieved from http://www.facultyfocus.com/ free-reports/online-student-engagement-tools-and-strategies/

Brown, G., Leonard, C., & Arthur-Kelly, M. (2016). Writing SMARTER goals for professional learning and improving classroom practices. Reflective Practice, 17(5), 621-635.

Dennen, V. P., Aubteen Darabi, A., & Smith, L. J. (2007). Instructor–learner interaction in online courses: The relative perceived importance of particular instructor actions on performance and satisfaction. Distance Education, 28(1), 65-79.

Johnson, J. M. (2015). On-Campus and Fully-Online University Students: Comparing Demographics, Digital Technology Use and Learning Characteristics. Journal of University Teaching and Learning Practice, 12 (1), 11-13.

Masland, L. (2019, October). You were trained as a scientist. Isn't it time to start teaching like one? [Keynote Address] The 19th Annual Conference on Teaching in Denver, CO, United States.

Mbukusa, N. R., Kibuule, D., Lates, J. (2017). Overcoming barriers of isolation in distance learning: Building a collaborative community in learning. Advances in Social Sciences Research Journal, 4(17). 34-42.

Ortagus, J. C. (2017). From the periphery to prominence: An examination of the changing profile of online students in American higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 32, 47-57.

Seaman, J. E., Allen, I. E., & Seaman, J. (2018). Grade Increase: Tracking Distance Education in the United States. Babson Survey Research Group. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED580852.pdf

Tyler-Smith, K. (2006). Early attrition among first time eLearners: A review of factors that contribute to drop-out, withdrawal and non-completion rates of adult learners undertaking eLearning programmes. Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 2, 73-85.

Industrial-Organizational Psychology: Introductory Psychology’s Missing Piece

Fri, 11 Jun 2021 16:44:48 GMT

Clemente I. Diaz, M.A.

Baruch College, City University of New York

Roni Reiter-Palmon, PhD

University of Nebraska at Omaha

Psychology is an extremely diverse field. Its diversity can be seen in its various subfields as well as the numerous career paths one can pursue. Consider the fact that individuals with a bachelor’s degree in psychology were employed in 92 different occupation categories, individuals with a master’s degree in 74 occupation categories, and those with a doctoral degree in 61 occupation categories (American Psychological Association Center for Workforce Studies, 2018). While the field of psychology is diverse, there is one constant regardless of which career path one takes or which subfield one pursues, we will be working for most of our lives. Yet despite this, most introductory psychology courses don’t cover Industrial-Organizational (I-O) psychology (i.e., the psychology of work).

Why I-O Psychology should be included in Introductory Psychology

There are various reasons to include I-O psychology in introductory psychology courses, the most basic being that working is a fundamental aspect of human life and behavior. In fact, estimates show that we spend roughly one-third of our lives at work. It’s no surprise that under its guidelines for the undergraduate major the American Psychological Association (APA) has specifically included professional development as a key goal (APA, 2013). Additionally, whether one agrees or not, the vast majority of students pursue higher education in hopes of increasing their employment outcomes (Eagan et. al, 2016, p. 70). Undergraduate psychology majors are not exempt from this trend given that over 56 percent of 2018 psychology graduates were either employed full-time or seeking employment (National Association of Colleges and Employers, 2019). Interestingly, and contrary to what most of us believe or would like to believe, the majority (56 percent) of psychology majors don’t pursue graduate studies of any kind (American Psychological Association Center for Workforce Studies, 2018). Although the inclusion of I-O psychology in introductory psychology won’t serve as a magic wand in preparing students for the workplace, it’s a good start.

Tips for incorporating I-O Psychology

I-O psychology isn’t usually included in introductory psychology for many reasons, but generally revolve around the following themes (in descending order): not in designated curriculum/textbook, not enough time, and lack of subject matter knowledge (Diaz, 2018). This section will provide tips and resources targeting each of these themes.

Not in designated curriculum/textbook

According to data collected from the Open Syllabus Project, the most frequently used introductory psychology textbooks don’t cover I-O psychology (Butina, 2019). The lack of coverage is a topic that the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP) has made a concerted effort in tackling through the creation of the Getting I-O into Intro Textbooks (GIT SIOP) taskforce (https://www.siop.org/GIT-Blog). In addition to reaching out to publishers, GIT SIOP has developed a vast array of free educator resources (sample syllabi, one-page I-O content summaries, PowerPoints, a stand-alone I-O psychology chapter, and other supplemental material). These resources can be accessed via the following website - www.teachiopsych.com. In addition to SIOP’s educator resources, open source publishers such as OpenStax (https://openstax.org/) and the NOBA Project (https://nobaproject.com/) each have a stand-alone I-O psychology chapter along with a PowerPoint and test bank.

Lack of time

Unlike more specialized, or upper level, psychology courses, introductory psychology tends to cover an exorbitant amount of content which can often overwhelm instructors. It is not surprising that some instructors have difficulty incorporating additional content. When time is a primary factor, the best solution is to integrate new material into already existing content.

Using the table of contents from Myers and DeWall’s (2021) introductory psychology textbook (according to the Open Syllabus Project David G. Myers authors the most frequently assigned introductory textbooks), we highlight I-O psychology topics which can be discussed at varying points in the semester. I-O psychology draws from many other areas of psychology therefore it is not too difficult to integrate content into already used material.

1. Thinking Critically With Psychological Science - Cursory glance of the psychology of work

2. The Biology of Mind - Neuroleadership, Organizational Neuroscience, Neuroscience of trust

3. Consciousness and the Two-Track Mind - Drug use in the workplace, presenteeism

4. Nature, Nurture, and Human Diversity - Workplace diversity (e.g., training, recruiting, discrimination)

5. Developing Through the Life Span - Career transitions (e.g., entering the world of work, aging and work ability)

6. Sensation and Perception - Managing workplace perceptions (e.g., attitudes, interests, work setting)

7. Learning - Training and development, training transfer

8. Memory - Impact of memory loss at work, working memory and task completion

9. Thinking and Language - Judgement and decision making (e.g., evidence-based management); creativity and innovation in the workplace

10. Intelligence - Individual differences and their assessments in the workplace (e.g., cognitive abilities vs. emotional intelligence, relationship between cognitive abilities and performance)

11. What Drives Us: Hunger, Sex, Friendship, and Achievement - Application of motivational theories to work setting

12. Emotions, Stress, and Health - Emotional labor, burnout, workplace stress, occupational health and safety, impact of Covid-19 on workers, work-life balance, occupational health psychology

13. Social Psychology - Group dynamics, teamwork, leadership, power and authority

14. Personality: Individual differences and their assessments in the workplace (e.g., relationship between personality traits and performance, how and why is personality assessed), personality traits associated with different types of leaders (e.g., charismatic, situational)

15. Psychological Disorders - Mental health stigma in the workplace, work-induced disorders

16. Therapy - Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) and other workplace interventions

Since the integration of I-O psychology content into current material only provides a surface level view of the field (versus having a unit specifically devoted to I-O psychology), instructors should also consider giving assignments that allow students to gain a more in-depth understanding of the subject (e.g., informational interviews, job analysis). One possible assignment is Department 12’s free I-O psychology mini-course. This 30-minute SIOP material-based course provides an overview of the field and culminates in a certificate of completion for anyone who obtains a 70 percent or higher on the end-of-course quiz. Department 12’s mini-course, in addition to other valuable information (e.g., articles, podcast episodes) can be accessed via the following link - https://department12.com/introduction-to-industrial-organizational-psychology-mini-course/.

Lack of subject matter knowledge

Not feeling well-versed on a subject can result in any instructor not incorporating said topic. But where should one start in hopes of better familiarizing oneself with I-O psychology? In addition to the educator resources mentioned earlier, SIOP publishes a free quarterly publication titled The Industrial Psychologist (TIP) which covers a variety of topics. Current and back issues can be accessed on the SIOP website (https://www.siop.org/Research-Publications/TIP). Other great resources include, ScienceForWork (https://scienceforwork.com/) and IOAtWork (https://www.ioatwork.com/) both of which provide research summaries.

Podcasts more to your liking? There are numerous I-O psychology related podcasts out there. Some well-regarded podcasts, in no particular order, include:

· Department 12 (https://department12.com/)

· The Indigo Podcast (https://www.indigotogether.com/indigopodcast)

· Mind Your Work (https://mindyourwork.io/)

· Midnight Student (https://open.spotify.com/show/5FoIus9RDw6JuIH3ifHsQJ)

· The World of Work (https://worldofwork.io/)

· Workr Beeing (https://workrbeeing.com/)

· Worklife with Adam Grant (https://www.ted.com/podcasts/worklife)

Still don’t feel comfortable speaking about I-O psychology? SIOP has you covered once again. Consider reaching out to an I-O psychology professional for a guest lecture via SIOP’s Advocacy Registry (https://www.siop.org/Membership/Registries/Advocacy).

Conclusion

In this article we have made the case for the importance of adding I-O psychology to the curriculum of introductory psychology. The concerns expressed by faculty members teaching introductory psychology courses have been noted, and we have attempted to provide solutions to each one. Specifically, resources are available via the national organization (SIOP) that allow for either a full unit on I-O psychology or integration of specific I-O topics into existing course materials. Further, expert resources such as speakers and podcasts are also available.

References

American Psychological Association. (2013). APA guidelines for the undergraduate psychology major: Version 2.0. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/undergrad/index.aspx

American Psychological Association Center for Workforce Studies (2018). CWS data tool: Careers in psychology. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/workforce/data-tools/careers-psychology

Butina, B. (2019, July 25). The most assigned psych textbooks. Retrieved from https://department12.com/the-most-assigned-psych-textbooks/

Diaz, C.I. (2018). Incorporating I-O Psychology into Introductory Psychology. Psych Learning Curve: Where Psychology and Education Connect. Retrieved from http://psychlearningcurve.org/incorporating-i-o-psychology-into-introductory-psychology/

Eagan, K., Stolzenber, E.B., Ramierz, J.J., Aragon, M.C., Suchard, M.R., Rios-Aguilar, C. (2016). The American freshman: fifty-year trends, 1966-2015. Los Angeles: Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA. Retrieved from https://www.heri.ucla.edu/monographs/50YearTrendsMonograph2016.pdf

Myers, D.G., DeWalls, N.C. (2021). Psychology (13th ed.). Worth Publishers.

National Association of Colleges and Employers (2019). First destinations for the college class of 2018: Findings and analysis. Retrieved from https://www.naceweb.org/job-market/graduate-outcomes/first-destination/class-of-2018/

Facilitating Students’ Learning Outcomes via the Training of Shelter Dogs

Fri, 07 May 2021 14:22:30 GMT

Shlomit Flaisher-Grinberg, PhD

Saint Francis University

My secret mission, as a college psychology professor, is to bring as many animals as possible into my classroom. Of course, I strive to improve my teaching effectiveness, maintain my scholarship productivity, and expand my service activities, but what I really want is to have cats sitting on my students’ laps, or dogs sitting at my students’ feet, during lectures. My college is a pet-free institution, and thus, animals can only be a part of it if integrated into the curriculum. Students in my undergraduate “Learning” course train rats to ride tiny scooters, play bowling, or shoot hoops. Students in my “Animal Minds” course receive numerous visits from ferrets, chickens, rabbits, cats, and their humans. But this is not enough. Millions of dogs annually enter animal shelters around the US. Some lack training or socialization, and many display problematic behaviors which can hinder their adoption (Protopopova et al., 2018). The integration of shelter dogs’ training into our lessons enables my students and myself to target this issue, make an impact on dogs and humans alike, and welcome shelter dogs into our campus environment.

Purpose and Goal:

In the spring of 2015, I taught the “Canine Learning & Behavior” undergraduate psychology course for the first time. The course was designed to allow students to foster shelter dogs for an entire academic semester, bring them to class, and train them using “learning” methodologies. It was hypothesized that the course will improve students’ ability to translate theoretical concepts to real-world, skill-based practices, apply their knowledge towards their personal and professional development, while improving the behavioral repertoire of shelter dogs and facilitating their adoption.

Course Set Up: I teach psychology, but I am not a dog trainer. I know the theories, but I also know that shelter dogs don’t bother reading the textbook. To prepare for the teaching of the course; I teamed-up with an experienced dog trainer, to later become the course adjunct instructor, set up a partnership with a local animal shelter, secured dog-appropriate classrooms and animal-approved housing units, submitted IACUC (Institutional Animal Care & Use) protocols and assured safety and liability regulations. The course was defined as an upper-level course, with a size limit of 12-15 students.

Course Content: If you teach “learning” concepts, for your freshman (e.g., Introduction to psychology) or advanced courses, you probably know the struggle. Students find it hard to differentiate CS from a US, UR from a CR. They tussle with the combination of ‘positive’, ‘negative’, ‘reinforcement’ and ‘punishments’ into meaningful units. They do not always “see” the application of these terms to their lives, the lives of people around them, or to their future professional occupation. Shelter dogs can bridge the gap.

We start the semester with a visit to the animal shelter. Interacting with, and selecting, dogs in need to join our classroom is an opportunity for students to practice behavioral observation and analysis. Assessing the dogs’ behavioral deficits and excesses (e.g., jumping, barking, nibbling, pawing, humping, leash-pulling, fear, house-soiling) allows students to align the dogs’ needs with their interests and capabilities. Once the dogs are chosen (one dog per 3-4 students, a total of 3-4 dogs per semester) they are transported to campus to live with preselected course students.

During the first few weeks after their arrival, students receive the opportunity to practice habituation, gradually and carefully exposing the dogs to the campus environment, and to new unfamiliar people. Discovering stimuli that stress/frighten the dogs (e.g., certain individual characteristics, moving cars), they learn to apply and de-sensitization and counterconditioning techniques (e.g., combining the exposure to a fear-producing stimulus with the dogs’ favorite treats). Later in the semester we expand the training to obedience and agility training. Grounding our work in the American Kennel Club’s “Canine Good Citizen” program, students train the dogs to calmly react to the approach/touch of a “friendly stranger”, to tolerate unexpected/distracting stimuli, to behave politely in public places or around other dogs, to sit at the students’ sides for an entire class session, to respond to the basic commands “sit”, “down”, “stay” and “come”, and to walk nicely on a loose leash. Depending on the interests of the students, the dogs are then taught different tricks, such as “paw-shake/high-five”, “roll-over”, “sit nicely”, “speak” or “army crawl”, and are trained using various agility courses. The work to extinguish maladaptive behaviors (e.g., jumping) and allow the acquisition of new adaptive behaviors (e.g., “nice” leash-walking) offers students with the opportunity to practice the application of classical and operant conditioning techniques. For instance, clicker-training requires the conversion of a “click” from a neutral stimulus to a conditioned stimulus, via its repetitive association with a treat, an unconditioned stimulus. Later, it can be used to mark the appropriate response in operant conditioning training, or to regain the dog’s attention if a distraction arises during practice. Training a dog to eliminate jumping or leash-pulling calls for the use of positive reinforcement (providing a treat/toy/other reinforcer when the dog does not jump, or for appropriate leash-walking), as well as negative punishment (withholding attention while the dog is jumping or pausing the walk for leash-pulling). Agility courses provide an opportunity to apply shaping (e.g., progressively training a dog to jump through a hoop), fixed/varied ratio schedules of reinforcement (starching the ratio by adding more hoops/waving-poles to the course), as well as forward/backward chaining (chaining various components within the course). Training dogs to sit quietly and calmly by their sides for an entire class session allows students to practice fixed/varied interval schedules of reinforcement (progressively requiring the dogs to sit “nicely” for 5, 10 and even 15 minutes before a reinforcer is provided). Training dogs for these tasks in various campus locations (including a hospital-like learning-environment comprised of wheelchairs and patient’s beds), enables the practice of generalization techniques. Finally, completing “research projects” focusing on the training of dogs for students-selected tasks (e.g., scent discrimination, responding to commands provided in sign language, pressing pre-recorded buttons for “verbal” communication) allow students to experience with all stages of the scientific methodology: literature search, hypothesis formation, methodological design, data collection and analysis, scientific writing, APA citation, and occasionally, conference presentation or the preparation of a manuscript for peer-reviewed publication.

Benefits: The end of the semester is marked with a “Puppy Graduation” celebration. During the event, the dogs receive paw-shakes, “graduation” diplomas, dog-cakes, and transition into the care of their adoptive families. In addition to its benefits to the dogs, there are benefits to animal shelters, enrolled students, campus community and me, the teaching faculty. Since 2015, 17 dogs were trained by our students. All were successfully adopted. In addition, staff and volunteers at the animal shelter often comment that the course reduces shelter crowding, lighten the time-burden on shelter personnel, increase the shelter’s visibility in the local community, and is perceived as a genuine contribution to the shelter’s efforts to improve the well-being of sheltered dogs. Importantly, the assessment of course effects on students’ learning outcomes suggest that the impact on students may be multidimensional (MS under review). First, the opportunity to “practice what they learn” in this course has been found to improve students’ comprehension of course materials and to enhance their appreciation of psychology. Students believe that it has enabled them to acquire employable skills (applicable towards the work with various animal species or with humans), solidified their future goals and enhanced their graduate school/workforce preparation. These findings are aligned with literature, demonstrating that hands-on learning (especially when involving live animals) increase students’ preference, enjoyment and understanding of class concepts (Elcoro & Trundle, 2013; Hunt & Macaskill, 2017). Second, students believe that learning to balance their schedules to accommodate the training of a shelter dog and learning to share training responsibilities with other students has enhanced their interpersonal awareness, effective communication, teamwork, leadership, and time-management skills. Third, students comment that pursuing activities that aligns with their values (e.g., animal advocacy) has provided them with a sense of self-efficacy and allowed them to become engaged members of their community. Fourth, walking a dog on its daily outing and spending time with it during the day has been suggested to improve the student’s physical and mental health via exercise and stress-reduction. In fact, students state that it allowed them to get to know more individuals on campus and generate new friendships, centered around the love of dogs. This is not surprising, given the joy brought to campus by our four-legged companions. Various individuals on campus stop to greet the dogs on their way to class, and many comments that after meeting the dogs their day got much better. Finally, the benefits to myself, as the teaching faculty, spans all 3 pillars of academic duties. The opportunity to design and teach the course has been a constant drive to improve my teaching pedagogy, and the assessment of the course’s effects on students, dogs, and our community-partners has yielded new research projects and publications (Flaisher-Grinberg, 20202a, 2020b). In addition, teaching the course has enabled me to connect with my local non-academic community, to better understand the needs of my community, and to make meaningful connections with individuals who share my passion for dogs. As such, the course has promoted both my personal and professional development, not to mention the attainment of my ultimate goal – bringing more animals into my classroom!

Important Consideration: There are a few important factors to consider if one wishes to develop a similar course. Working with shelter dogs may require adequate hands-on experience, a constant supply of “dog-necessities” (food, kennels, etc.) and veterinary supervision. The generation of a collaborating with an experienced dog trainer in the community and the cooperation with a local animal shelter may be of benefit. In this respect, it is advised that the roles and responsibilities of each ally in this partnership be clearly defined. Working with shelter dogs in an academic institution generates potential risks and obstacles. The investment of time and effort into the creation of IACUC protocols, preparation of safety/precaution procedures, elucidation of liability regulations and attainment of adequate permissions from all involved academic offices is advised. It is also recommended that the possibility of allergies/phobias in campus residents is evaluated.

Possible Alternatives: There are alternative ways to integrate shelter dogs (or shelter cats) into “learning” (or other) psychology courses. One can organize visitations of shelter animals to the classroom, or arrange for students to visit animal shelters, allowing students to practice supervised, yet time-restricted animal-training sessions. These may be included within the course’s syllabus or extend the curriculum, offering extra credit opportunities to invested students (McDonald, Caso, & Dee, 2005). These may involve observation, documentation and analysis, instructor-led training demonstration, or individual/group-led animal training. Seeking opportunities to engage students in independent research projects, community service or internships – one may consider supervising their work with, or at an animal shelter. If the institution holds pet-friendly policies, or allow animal residency in campus housing, these options can be extended to include the fostering of animals in need by responsible and experienced students. At any point, attention should be dedicated to institutional guidelines, safety of students and animals, and the pursuit of fun, interactive and impactful learning/teaching opportunities!

References

Elcoro, M., & Trundle, M. (2013). Student Preferences for Live Versus Virtual Rats in a Learning Course. International Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 7(1), 1-13. https://doi.org/10.20429/ijsotl.2013.070116

Flaisher-Grinberg, S. (2020a) Old Dogs Can Learn New Tricks: Using the Academic Classroom to Improve the Adoption Outcomes of 10 Shelter Dogs. Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science. 28:1-15. doi:10.1080/10888705.2020.1717339

Flaisher-Grinberg, S. (2020b) For the Love of Dogs! Creating an Academia-Community Partnership to Target a Mutual Goal. Impact: The Journal of the Center for Interdisciplinary Teaching & Learning, 9(1) 8-15 2020. http://sites.bu.edu/impact/previous-issues/impact-winter-2020/for-the-love-of-dogs/

Hunt, M. J., & Macaskill, A. C. (2017). Student Responses to Active Learning Activities with Live and Virtual Rats in Psychology Teaching Laboratories. Teaching of Psychology, 44(2), 160–164. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628317692632

McDonald, T. W., Caso. R., & Dee F. (2005). Teaching and Learning Operant Principles in Animal Shelters: Perspectives from Faculty, Students, and Shelter Staff. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 32(4) 310-321.

Protopopova, A., Hauser, H., Goldman, K. J., & Wynne, C. (2018). The effects of exercise and calm interactions on in-kennel behavior of shelter dogs. Behavioural processes, 146, 54–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beproc.2017.11.013

Using Popular Technologies to Increase Engagement and Classroom Community in Online Courses

Mon, 05 Apr 2021 16:57:32 GMT

By Deborah Miller, PhD, HSPP

Assistant Professor of Psychology

Indiana University East

I like having fun with my students. It’s one of my favorite things about teaching. Getting to know about them and their personalities, senses of humor, pets, jobs, families and how they interact in a group of their peers is so rewarding. But beyond being enjoyable for me (and hopefully the students!) the sense of engagement and classroom community engendered by a positive classroom environment is beneficial to overall student success (Kuh, 2001).

Personalized interactions can be tough to cultivate in an online environment. I’m sure many of us have found out just how tough it can be as we’ve pivoted to online instruction during the COVID pandemic. And it’s likely that online learning is only becoming more prevalent with time – in 2019, about 65% of students had participated in an online course (Sellers, 2019) and that number will likely be closer to 100% by the time the pandemic comes to its conclusion. It will be essential in the coming semesters and years to find innovative ways to engage students in the online learning environment and create a sense of community that allows for relationships between faculty, students, and their peers to grow.

One way to do that is through new technology that is popular among younger generations and allows for glimpses into our students’ lives and personalities. A few studies have explored the use of social media sites like Twitter and Facebook as tools to increase engagement and community (e.g. Heiberger & Harper, 2008; Junco et al., 2011), but we certainly find that new technologies are springing up and gaining popularity at rates that make it difficult for researchers (and instructors!) to keep up.

TikTok is one such technology that is incredibly popular and also provides ample opportunity for students to engage with class material, faculty, and peers in creative, highly personalized ways. If you’re like many faculty members, you’ve perhaps peripherally heard of TikTok but may not have ventured to use it yourself. But, if there was ever a time to put yourself out there and learn something new for the sake of your students, now is that time.

What is TikTok?

TikTok is a smartphone app that allows users to create short video and photo projects that can be edited to include music, filters, effects, text captions, and more. TikTok-ers use the app in many ways, including creating lip sync videos and viral dances to their favorite songs, brief comedy videos, and other incredibly creative, engaging content styles. The allure of TikTok is that the videos are short, engaging, and creative. Once you get the hang of it, TikTok is very easy to use and videos can be created anywhere in a short amount of time.

Why would I use TikTok in my classes?

TikTok can provide a unique way for students to engage with the course material, their instructor, and their peers. It offers a chance that goes beyond ordinary assignments, papers, and discussion posts for students to inject their personality, sense of humor, and snippets of their personal lives into the classroom in ways they might typically do in seated courses. When creating their videos, students turn to their environment for inspiration – whatever is nearby gets used as the cast and crew. For some students, this means allowing their peers and instructor to meet their pets, family members, roommates, significant others, etc. while creating their videos. For others, it is an opportunity to display an artistic skill or a behind the scenes look at an aspect of their lives that would not normally be presented in an online course. This sharing of themselves can increase a student’s sense of belonging and community with their online peers and faculty.

How can I use TikTok in my classes?

While there are endless uses of TikTok depending on your own level of creativity, there are two ways I typically use this in my course to promote engagement and community. First, I want to promote engagement with the material in a creative way, so the TikTok assignments always require students to create a video explaining a concept from the week’s materials according to their own understanding of it. They can complete this in any way they want, whether it is ultra-creative or just meeting the basic requirements. Second, I want the students to engage with each other, so the TikTok video creation assignments are embedded within a discussion post. Students are divided into small groups of about 5-6 and must post their own video to the discussion, view each small group member’s video, then vote for their favorite video of the week by “liking” their favorite video’s discussion post (a feature that can be enabled in the Canvas LMS, but I’m unsure about the features of other LMS platforms). This creates a slight sense of competition for some students and for those who enjoy competition, it motivates them to do their best work to impress their peers. However, I ensure that the environment is not so competitive that it intimidates the students who are less competitive in nature.

This model of discussion board TikTok assignments is very effective at increasing students’ engagement with material and each other, but one final factor requires instructor attention throughout the course so that student-instructor engagement is increased. I make sure to watch and make personalized comments on every student’s video in each discussion. Students are putting themselves out there in a somewhat vulnerable manner for their peers and instructors – showing parts of their personal lives that they may not be accustomed to sharing with online peers and instructors (or even in seated classrooms if they are more introverted). It can be an intimidating and vulnerable process for some – but I have certainly found that the students who were willing to step out of their comfort zones to fully engage with this assignment had incredibly positive experiences when they were met with encouraging responses to their videos, not only from peers but especially from the instructor. I take great pains to make an encouraging comment about a personalized aspect of the video (e.g. I love your dog! You certainly used him to effectively explain the concept of operant conditioning.)

An additional way that I actively use TikTok is to make my own videos that use my own personal life and environment. This is a great way to let students get a feel for who you are as an instructor and just regular person behind your instructor persona, which can highly contribute to students’ perception that you are accessible, approachable, and authentic – three factors that are important to students forming a personal connection with their instructors, which is a predictor of student engagement and sense of community (Mandernach, 2009). I not only create TikTok videos as examples of what students could do for their discussion assignment videos, but also to embed into course materials as a quick way to illustrate a variety of course concepts. This way, students get “behind the scenes” engagement with me throughout the semester, just as they would if we were chatting before or after class or if I told an interesting personal story that related to the lecture material.

Are there any downsides to TikTok?

If students are unfamiliar with TikTok, it can feel intimidating or vulnerable. Nontraditional students may feel especially nervous to leave their comfort zone and learn a new technology that is typically associated with younger people. That is why it is important to design all TikTok assignments with transparency in mind – students need to know that there is a pedagogical purpose behind the activity. You’re not just trying to be a “cool parent” who knows the latest trends – you’re using this app for real purposes that will help them succeed and as an added benefit, hopefully have fun at the same time. This is one assignment that can benefit especially from the Transparent Teaching framework by Winkelmes (2016), so students fully understand the goals and rationale for the assignments at the outset.

Another important factor is that students will need plenty of time to learn how to use TikTok before the first assignment is due. Provide some tutorial materials (easily found on YouTube) and plenty of examples of the types of videos you are expecting. Make the first TikTok assignment a complete/incomplete grade to allow students some wiggle room as they are learning a new skill. Give them a wide range of acceptable types of videos for the assignment.

Finally, you will have students that for whatever reason, students just feel a lot of anxiety about creating a video of themselves. It is important to be clear to those students that personal information is NOT required. TikTok allows users to create photo slideshows and text-based videos that do not require the students to video themselves or their surroundings if they want to retain their privacy. I have had students create a slideshow using a series of memes they found on the internet and did not contain any private information at all. Other students have used tools within TikTok to create text-based explanations of their chosen course concept accompanied by a song – again, no personal disclosures required. It can also be helpful to let students turn in video using ANY app they wish, even just the video recording app on their phone, if they have a particular aversion to TikTok. Students can also create private videos in TikTok, download them to their computer or phone, and re-upload them to the discussion board so that they do not have to use the public sharing feature of TikTok or link their peers and instructors to their personal TikTok account if they have one for personal use. For students who are extremely averse to this assignment, I allow them to create more traditional presentations in PowerPoint or Prezi, if they meet the minimum standard for explaining course concepts.

Conclusion

Using new technologies to engage students and create a sense of classroom community should be a strategy in addition to what has already been found to work. However, popular technologies like TikTok can provide unique opportunities to engage students in ways that are not possible with traditional strategies. While it can be challenging to learn something new, it can also be highly rewarding. Whatever strategies you end up using to create engagement and community, you can be confident that you are doing your students a service and contributing to their success.

References

Heiberger, G. & Harper, R. (2008). Have you Facebooked Astin lately? Using technology to increase student involvement. In R. Junco & D. M. Timm (Eds), Using emerging technologies to enhance student engagement. New directions for student services issue #124 (pp. 19–35). San Francisco, CA: Jossey‐Bass.

Junco, R., Heiberger, G. & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27, 2, 119–132. doi:10.1111/j.1365‐2729.2010.00387.x.

Kuh, G. D. (2001). The National Survey of Student Engagement: Conceptual framework and overview of psychometric properties. Retrieved from https://scholarworks.iu.edu/dspace/bitstream/handle/2022/24268/The%20National%20Survey%20of%20Student%20Engagement%20Conceptual%20framework%20and%20overview%20of%20psychometric%20properties.pdf

Mandernach, B. J. (2009). Effect of instructor-personalized multimedia in the online classroom. International Review of Research in Open and Distributed Learning, 10(3).

Sellers, E. (2019). Poor time management in online education. Seattle PI. https://education.seattlepi.com/poor-time-management-online-learning-1435.html

Winkelmes, M. A., Bernacki, M., Butler, J., Zochowski, M., Golanics, J., & Weavil, K. H. (2016). A teaching intervention that increases underserved college students’ success. Peer Review, 18(1/2), 31-36.

Hearts and Minds: How Seeing Students as Whole Persons Can Improve Teaching

Sat, 06 Mar 2021 16:47:16 GMT

Brian D. Bergstrom, Shirley A. Ashauer, and Dustin R. Nadler

Maryville University

Psychology majors are often attracted to the discipline by a deep and authentic desire to help improve the lives of others through the application of psychological science. Yet, as students encounter unexpected challenges or setbacks in courses such as Statistics or Research Methods, they sometimes become disenchanted, thinking they lack the ability to be successful in the field. After their first “C” on a Statistics exam, for example, they throw up their hands and despair that they no longer “have what it takes” to make it in psychology. A rather narrow and specific disappointment gives way to a fretful concern that their performance reflects a lack of ability, and some students surrender to the conclusion that they are not be “cut out” for psychology if they can’t compute a MANOVA (on their first attempt!).

In short, they implicitly believe that statistical ability is a fixed, innate trait that some lucky students possess, while others (like them) lack the “right stuff.” Even students who have learned the concept of growth mindset - the belief that ability can be developed - may not be able to implement that belief in the face of their own academic struggles. This dilemma raises two questions: what factors stymie the productive application of a growth mindset among students, and how can we intervene to bolster psychology students’ resilience when they encounter such setbacks in challenging psychology courses?

In a recent study, we addressed this question with an entire first-year cohort of college students that was part of a broader longitudinal assessment on college student development and success (Ashauer et al., 2020). Research on growth mindset has received much attention for its relevance to academic performance (Paunesku et al., 2015; Robins & Pals, 2002; Walton, 2014; Yeager et al., 2016). But, we asked, is having a growth mindset enough? Or are there individual differences that support (or undermine) its application? To address this, we considered two major themes in college student development that are critical aspects of becoming a mature, fully functioning adult: (1) intrapersonal development, toward becoming an autonomous individual, and (2) interpersonal development, as social relationships undergo considerable change (Allen & Land, 1999; Erikson, 1961). Specifically, we examined whether attachment theory (relationship functioning) and self-determination theory (autonomous functioning) might inform the trajectory of student success, and whether these constructs might contribute to our understanding of why some students are better able to mobilize a growth mindset when they encounter academic struggle.

Attachment and Autonomous Functioning

Attachment relationships are those in which another person serves, in some measure, as a “secure base” and a “safe haven” for the student. The attachment system is often conceptualized as including a pair of unconscious mental models—one of self, one of others—that are “tuned” to different degrees of anxiety and avoidance and provide default expectations for social relationships (Ainsworth et al, 1978; Bowlby, 1982). Anxiety is associated with concerns about self-worth, the dependability of others, and a high need for reassurance, while avoidance is associated with a strong desire for independence, a reluctant stance toward intimacy and disclosure, and a tendency to pull away when their autonomy is challenged (Crowell et al., 2016). Previous studies have found that greater attachment security is associated with better adjustment to college, higher academic performance, and higher self-esteem (Mikulincer & Shaver, 2016).

We believe that the cognitive and emotional volatility of insecure attachment can disrupt the application of cognitive and emotional resources needed to implement a growth mindset. When the attachment system is activated by a perceived threat, the cognitive, emotional, and motivational resources consumed by attachment processes might make it hard to redirect those resources in the service of academic goals. In this way (and others), a growth mindset may lie impotent in the mind of an otherwise capable student, as attachment dynamics co-opt attention and subvert the executive resources needed to drive a growth mindset into action.

The transition to college is also an important time in development during which a major task is becoming an autonomous individual (Allen & Land, 1999; Erikson, 1961). Thus, we also examined autonomous functioning (self-governance) in students (Deci & Ryan, 1985; Ryan & Deci, 2000), and more specifically, authorship, which involves being primarily guided by one’s own personal values (Weinstein et al., 2012). Authorship has been positively associated with persistence and confidence (Deci & Ryan, 2000; Nix et al., 1999); greater self-esteem (Deci & Ryan, 1995); and heightened vitality and academic performance (Ryan & Frederick, 1997; Vansteenkiste et al., 2008). We believe that authored students will be less vulnerable to the slings and arrows of academic challenge as well attachment distress, and thereby could translate a growth mindset into concrete, constructive action because they have more cognitive and emotional resources to invest in academic tasks and are less likely to engage in off-task cogitation related to attachment concerns (Bernier et al., 2004).

In our study of a first-year cohort of college students, we found precisely that (Ashauer et al., 2020). Students with more of a growth mindset had higher end-of-semester GPAs, but insecure attachment completely dissolved that link. Concurrently, authorship buffered this inverse relationship such that authored students maintained higher GPAs than less authored students. Because attachment anxiety played a significant role in compromising the growth mindset-performance relationship in our study, we focus our teaching recommendations on mitigating attachment anxiety and bolstering attachment security. Based on our findings as well as the extant literature, we propose three strategies from the growth mindset, self-determination, and attachment literature that could be applied in psychology courses: 1) short-term strategies to create a “safe haven,” (2) process versus person feedback strategies, and (3) long-term strategies to promote autonomous functioning through security-enhancement.

Strategies

Short-Term Strategies to Create a “Safe Haven”

Attachment theory has shown that relationship partners, including instructors, can provide a safe haven for students during moments of challenge and distress, as well as a secure base from which to explore and make mistakes that are an inevitable part of learning new concepts (Mikulciner & Shaver, 2016). Yet, when anxiously attached students become distressed, they exhibit hyperactivating strategies to attain reassurance that the instructor will still respect them. These strategies can preoccupy them such that their performance is compromised, prompting the question: what strategies can instructors use in the moment to create a safe haven and mitigate momentary anxiety for such students?

Caprariello and Reis (2011) found that when an anxiously attached student perceives a relationship partner as responsive (that the instructor understands, respects, and values the student), the student becomes less defensive after receiving failure feedback because they feel they are valued for who they are (rather than how they perform). With the increased social isolation of the current pandemic (possibly exacerbated in anxiously attached students), the social connection and support created by perceived instructor responsiveness may be even more critical to the learning process. When students feel valued and respected, they experience fewer concerns about perceived worth and diminished social value (Baumeister & Leary, 1995). Instructors can support anxiously attached students by calming them when they encounter challenge, helping them to acknowledge the issue, discussing ways in which the issue can be solved, and providing the reassurance they need to remain constructively focused (Arriaga et al., 2018).

Process Versus Person Feedback Strategies

Moreover, instructors can play crucial roles in helping anxious students mitigate their sense of contingent self-worth (the belief that their worth is contingent on performance) by helping them attribute their successes to their own efforts (Caprariello & Reis, 2011). When instructors bolster students’ internalized beliefs that they are capable and worthy, they decrease an overdependence on instructors to affirm their self-worth. What concrete practices can instructors enact in the classroom to do so?

By providing students with effort-oriented feedback (“You worked hard to troubleshoot what went wrong in SPSS when you ran the MANOVA!”), instructors focus student attention on process (problem solving strategies) and their own effort, which fosters better self-regulatory skills and ultimately autonomy. Moreover, process feedback, whether it is praise or criticism, encourages mastery-oriented responses to setbacks (Kamins & Dweck, 1999). For example, attributing failure to effort or strategy (“you didn’t read the chapter on MANOVA before completing the assignment”), rather than a fixed trait (“statistics just comes easier to some students”) mobilizes student persistence, their willingness to use error as diagnostic information on how to improve, and improves academic performance (Kamins & Dweck, 1999).

On the other hand, when instructors provide students with person or trait-oriented feedback (“you are so talented in statistics!”), students learn to measure their self-worth by their performance and innate ability (Kamins & Dweck, 1999). Instructors may be unwittingly teaching students that their competence or self-worth is determined by their performance when they use person-oriented feedback, leading to a student’s belief that “I must not be cut out for psychology!” and a helpless response pattern of anxiety, lowered persistence, and decreased performance (Burhans & Dweck, 1995). By providing students with process feedback, instructors can help anxious students mitigate the hyperactivating strategies that often compromise their performance when they experience distress during setbacks.

Long-term Strategies to Promote Autonomous Functioning through Security-Enhancement

Although the aforementioned strategies can assuage students’ momentary anxieties of self-worth triggered by setbacks, these short-term strategies may unintentionally lead to students’ overreliance on instructors for reassurance, and an overdependence on them to boost their sense of self-worth (Arriaga et al., 2018). As a result, students’ maturation into autonomous individuals with secure relationship functioning can be stunted. According to the Attachment Security Enhancement Model (ASEM; Arriaga et al., 2018), instructors can implement long-term developmental strategies to shift students’ dependency on them in the direction of greater independence and autonomous functioning by enhancing their secure model of self and others.

In the short term, instructors can employ autonomy-supportive teaching behaviors by making connections on the relevance of a topic to students’ lives and engage students in learning for its intrinsic value (Black & Deci, 2000). In the long-term, however, instructors might employ strategies that encourage students to pursue their own personal learning goals and the activities associated with those goals, thereby building students’ self-esteem and autonomy (Feeney, 2004). As anxious students begin to internalize the belief that their instructor views them as capable and worthy, their self-confidence should increase, and their overdependence on instructors for reassurance and approval should decrease (Mikulciner & Shaver, 2016). Finally, instructors can both challenge and support students’ development of autonomous functioning by increasing students’ self-awareness and endorsement of their own actions (Sheldon et al., 2018). Rather than telling students what to do, instructors can ask them questions like “What do you think? What do you want to do?” and then problem-solve together to build confidence in their skill and ability to autonomously self-regulate.

Implications

In sum, our findings showed a more complex, nuanced relationship in the growth mindset – academic performance relationship. Our results suggest that a promising future direction for promoting and predicting success among psychology students may involve a “hearts and minds” approach: that is, seeing students as whole persons may improve the teaching and learning process. The relationship an instructor develops with their students – the social connection they create, the type of feedback they provide, and supporting students’ development of self-awareness and endorsement of their own internalized actions - may play an important role in bolstering students’ resilience and academic performance in the face of challenge throughout their college experience.

References

Ainsworth, M.S. (1989). Attachments beyond infancy. American Psychologist, 44(4), 709-716.

Aninsworth, M.S., Blehar, M.C., Waters, E., & Wall, S. (1978). Patterns of attachment: A psychological study of the strange situation. Oxford: Lawrence Erlbaum.

Allen, J., & Land, D. (1999). Attachment in adolescence. In J. Cassidy & P.R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications (pp. 319-335). New York, New York: Guilford.

Arriaga, X.B., Kumashiro, M., Simpson, J.A., & Overall, N.C. (2018). Revising working models across time: Relationship situations that enhance attachment security. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 22(1), 71-96.

Ashauer, S.A., Nadler, D.R., & Bergstrom, B.D. (2020, June 1-September 1). Attachment and growth mindset: Future directions for promoting and predicting academic success among first-year college students [Poster presentation]. 32nd Association for Psychological Science Annual Convention, Virtual Poster Showcase. www.psychologicalscience.org/conventions/annual

Baumeister, R.F., & Leary, M.R. (1995). The need to belong: Desire for interpersonal attachments as a fundamental human motivation. Psychological Bulletin, 20, 1175- 1181.

Bernier, A., Larose, S., & Whipple, N. (2005). Leaving home for college: A potentially stressful event for adolescents with preoccupied attachment patterns. Attachment & Human Development, 72(2), 171-185. https://doi.org/10.1080/14616730500147565

Black, A.E., & Deci, E. L. (2000). The effects of instructors’ autonomy support and students’ autonomous motivation on learning organic chemistry: A self-determination theory perspective. Science Education, 84, 740-756.

Bowlby, J. (1982). Attachment and loss (Vol.1: Attachment). 2nd ed. New York, New York: Basic Books.

Burhans, K.K., & Dweck, C.S. (1995). Helplessness in early childhood: The role of contingent self-worth. Child Development, 66, 1719–1738.

Caprariello, P.A., & Reis, H.T. (2010). Perceived partner responsiveness minimizes defensive reactions to failure. Social Psychological and Personality Science, 2, 365-372.

Crowell, J.A., Fraley, R.C., & Roisman, G.I. (2016). Measurement of individual differences in adolescence in adult attachment. In J. Cassidy & P.R. Shaver (Eds.), Handbook of attachment: Theory, research, and clinical applications, 3rd ed, (pp. 599-634). New York, New York: Guilford Press.

Deci, E.L, & Ryan, R.M. (1985). Intrinsic motivation and self-determination in human behavior. New York, New York: Plenum.

Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (1995). Human autonomy: The basis for true self-esteem. In M. Kernis (Ed.), Efficacy, agency, and self-esteem (pp. 31-49). New York, New York: Plenum.

Deci, E.L., & Ryan, R.M. (2000). The “what” and “why” of goal pursuits: Human needs and the self-determination of behavior. Psychological Inquiry, 4, 227-268.

Erikson, E.H. (1961). Youth: Fidelity and diversity. In E.H. Erikson (Ed.), Youth: Change and challenge (pp. 1-23). New York, New York: Basic Books.

Feeney, B.C. (2004). A secure base: Responsive support of goal strivings and exploration in adult intimate relationships. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 87, 631-648.

Kamins, M.L., & Dweck, C.S. (1999). Person versus process praise and criticism: Implications for contingent self-worth and coping. Developmental Psychology, 35(3), 835–847.

Mikulciner, M., & Shaver, P. R. (2016). Attachment in adulthood: Structure, dynamics, and change, 2nd ed. New York, New York: Guilford Press.

Nix, G., Ryan, $. Manley, J.B., & Deci, E.L. (1999). Revitalization through self-regulation: The effects of autonomous and controlled motivation on happiness and vitality. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 35, 266-284.

Paunesku, D., Walton, G.M., Romero, C., Smith, E.N., Yeager, D.S., & Dweck, C.S. (2015). Mind-set interventions are a scalable treatment for academic underachievement. Psychological Science, 26(6), 784-93. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797615571017

Robins, R.W., & Pals, J.L. (2002). Implicit self-theories in the academic domain: Implications for goal orientation, attributions, affect, and self-esteem change. Self and Identity, 1(4), 313-336. https://doi.org/10.1080/15298860290106805

Ryan, R.M., & Deci, E.L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68-78. doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68

Ryan, R.M., & Frederick, C.M. (1997). On energy, personality, and health: Subjective vitality as a dynamic reflection of well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68-78. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68

Sheldon, K.M., Gordeeva, T., Leontiev, D., Lynch, M.F., Osin, E., Rasskazova, E., & Dementiy, L. (2018). Freedom and responsibility go together: Personality, experimental, and cultural demonstrations. Journal of Research in Personality, 73, 63-74.

Vansteennkiste, M., Ryan, R.M., & Deci, E.L. (2008). Self-determination theory and the explanatory role of psychological needs in human well-being. In L. Bruni, F. Comim, & M. Pugno (Eds.), Capabilities and happiness (pp.187-223). Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Walton, G.M. (2014). The new science of wise psychological interventions. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 23(1), 73-82. https://doi.org/10.1177/0963721413512856

Weinstein, N., Przybylski, A., & Ryan, R.M. (2012). The index of autonomous functioning: Development of a scale of human autonomy. Journal of Research in Personality, 46, 397-413. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jrp.2012.03.007

Yeager, D.S., & Dweck, C.S. (2012). Mindsets that promote resilience: When students believe that personal characteristics can be developed. Educational Psychologist, 47(4), 302 -314. https://doi.org/10.1080/00461520.2012.7228

“Here’s My Accommodation Letter”: Discussing Academic Accommodations with Students

Sun, 07 Feb 2021 19:18:20 GMT

Kevin J. O’Connor (Providence College)

Introduction

Most schools and their disability services office require students with disabilities to hand deliver accommodation notification letters to their professors. This is done with purpose. The exchange of the letter invites a conversation about the accommodation and learning needs of the student in relation to course requirements and delivery.

This essay grew from a question about how often a meaningful discussion regarding accommodations is had. Findings from a brief study I conducted on the topic indicate the accommodation process may have become commonplace resulting in only a cursory interaction between students and professors before or after class when the accommodation letter is submitted (O’Connor, 2020). I view this as a lost opportunity to help students maximize their experience in a course. In response, I share with you some thoughts and suggestions on how to communicate with students regarding academic accommodations with the hope that I may pursued interest in doing so.

The Accommodation Letter

The accommodation letter is a notification (not a request) that identifies the student as having registered with the campus disability services office and identifies the accommodations the student is to receive in your class. The letter forces disclosure of disability status on the part of the student in order to receive accommodations; however, the specifics of the disability itself are not disclosed. The process is backed by federal civil rights statutes supportive of equal educational opportunity – the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA, 2008; formerly ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (1973).

Delivering the Accommodation Letter

A core value of disability services on campus is the promotion of self-determination in the students who access services (Gelbar et al., 2020). The Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD, n.d.) calls on disability service programs and specialists to “use a service delivery model that encourages students with disabilities to develop independence” (Section 5. Counseling and Self-Determination). This includes educating and assisting students to function independently and to develop a program mission that promotes student self-determination. So it is quite intentional when schools put students in the position of having to deliver the news of their accommodation needs to their professors.

Discussing Accommodations with Students

You do not have to be a disability specialist or service provider to talk with students about their accommodation needs. The expertise you bring to the conversation is in knowing how you conduct your course. Here is an approach and some suggestions on how to have this conversation with students:

Syllabus and First Class Meeting

Students with disabilities often look for signs from their professors that they will be supported if they disclose their disability status through the accommodation process (Quinlan et al., 2012). You can let students know that you will be supportive by having a statement in your syllabus that speaks to your openness to work with students needing academic accommodations and referring to it during an early class meeting. This goes beyond simply stating that students needing accommodations should contact the disability services office. It is a statement that lets students know it is important to you personally as their instructor.

Invitation to Meet

When handed an accommodation letter ask the student to schedule a meeting with you to discuss what is in the letter. I phrase this as an invitation to discuss how an accommodation will be provided and an opportunity for me to share in more detail information about the course and how it is delivered.

Preparing to Meet

Ask the student to prepare for the meeting by looking over the course syllabus. I ask students to think about accommodation needs and themselves as learners in relation to what is seen from their review. For your part, you should prepare for the meeting by gathering materials that represent the course and what the requirements will entail. In addition, it is helpful to have a description in mind of the teaching approaches you plan to use (lectures, group work, write on the board, show slides, expect class participation, and so on).

Conducting the Meeting

Let the syllabus be your template for the meeting and keep the accommodation letter at hand. Use gathered additional course materials as needed. I usually guide the discussion as follows: 1) review the obvious alignments that exist between the accommodations listed in the letter and course assignments (e.g., there are tests-student needs extended time-how will we do this?), 2) review other course requirements of a less obvious nature for the same (e.g., there are also weekly quizzes-student needs extended time-will extra time be needed for the quizzes and if so how will we do this?), 3) discuss the student’s accommodations in relation to teaching approaches (e.g., often call on students-is the rationale behind needing extended test time going to hold any relation to being called on in class and if so what will we do about it?), and 4) notify that you will be checking in with the student a few times to see how it is all working.

After the Meeting

Send an e-mail thanking the student for meeting with you and note anything of importance that may have been discussed. Following a first milestone in the course where an accommodation may have been used (e.g., first exam, paper) check in with the student to see how it went. You will discover all kinds of things at this point (e.g., student with fine-motor impairment couldn’t finish open-response items; student finished exam in half the required time; the quiet testing environment wasn’t quite at all; the student had a few questions during the test but couldn’t ask because it wasn’t taken in the classroom; there was so much information on the exam the student couldn’t remember it all). Each of these examples comes from students I have had. In each case adjustments were made that contributed to a more accurate demonstration of learning on the part of the student. Without an open conversation about accommodations and learning needs this would not have occurred.

Additional Considerations

Here are some additional suggestions to keep in mind when interacting with students regarding their academic accommodations:

It would be pollyannaish to assume that students will always have a favorable experience discussing accommodations with professors. Documentation of the contrary has been shared (Lyman et al., 2016, Toutain, 2019). Be mindful that some students may be guarded about discussing accommodation needs as a result of past experiences.

Avoid asking students what their disability is. Students are obligated to disclose that they have a disability in order to receive accommodations but they are not required to disclose specifics. In my experience students will be open about their disability and share how it impacts them as learners if they know you have their best interests in mind.

Prior to college, students with disabilities receive a tremendous amount of support from others and may not have had the opportunity to develop the skills required to discuss their learning needs (i.e., self-knowledge, awareness). Receive students where they are at and be patient if they do not have insight when you meet. This is particularly so for students new to the college setting.

Remember to hold information about the disability status of students in confidence. Students are often comfortable sharing their disability letters in the presence of classmates but this is for them to do, not you.

If you don’t agree with an accommodation, and it happens sometimes, don’t put students in the position of having to defend or negotiate the request. Start with the disability support services office or person who handles accommodations and then work backward to the student. Have this discussion with the disability services office before you meet with the student.

You are not obligated to go beyond what is in the accommodation letter. This said, accommodation letters are often general in nature and do not take into account all of the idiosyncrasies of a particular course. There may be some adjustments needed or additional accommodations that may be beneficial to the student – to the extent you are comfortable offering these.

Final Thoughts

Students with disabilities make up a good amount of the undergraduate population (in 2015-2016, 19 percent according to estimates of the U.S. Department of Education, 2016). An important predictor of their college success is the extent to which course accommodations are provided. The process of obtaining accommodations is complex but it can be made easier when faculty are supportive and open to engaging in a meaningful dialogue with students about their learning needs.

References

Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act, Pub. L. No. 110-325 § 3406 (2008).

Association on Higher Education and Disability (n.d.). Program standards and performance indicators.

https://www.ahead.org/professional-resources/information-services-portal/data-collection-and-management/performance-indicators

Gelbar, N., Madaus, J. W., Dukes, L., Faggella-Luby, M., Volk, D., & Monahan, J. (2020) Self-determination and college students with disabilities: Research trends and construct measurement. Journal of Student Affairs Research and Practice, 57(2), 163-181. https://doi.org/10.1080/19496591.2019.1631835

Lyman, M., Beecher, M. E., & Griner, D. (2016). What keeps students with disabilities from using accommodations in postsecondary education? A qualitative review. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 29(2), 123-140.

O’Connor, K. J. (2020, June 1–September 1). “Here’s my accommodation letter”: Student perspectives on interacting with faculty about accommodation requests [Poster presentation]. Association for Psychological Science/Society for the Teaching of Psychology Teaching Institute Virtual Poster Showcase.

Quinlan, M. M., Bates, B. R., & Angell, M. E. (2012). ‘What can I do to help?’: Postsecondary students with learning disabilities’ perceptions of instructors’ classroom accommodations. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs, 12(4), 224–233. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1471-3802.2011.01225.x

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, Pub. L. No. 93-112, 87 § 394 (1973).

Toutain, C. (2019). Barriers to accommodations for students with disabilities in higher education: A literature review. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability, 32(3), 297-310.

U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2016). Digest of Education Statistics, 2015 (2016-014). Retrieved from https://nces.ed.gov/fastfacts/display.asp?id=60

Zombie brains and metacognition: How to use the undead to help students increase learner agency

Mon, 04 Jan 2021 12:52:29 GMT

Melissa Maffeo Masicampo, PhD

Wake Forest University

I’m a mean teacher, its true. I trick my students all the time. I’ve given my students PTC paper to demonstrate bitter taste (I do warn them first, though). Once I encouraged a Pepsi vs. Coke taste-test and debate and got the students really riled up. The thing was, unbeknownst to them, both of the sodas they tasted were Coke. My biggest trick, though, is teaching students to use metacognitive strategies without them even knowing it. And I do it with zombie brains.

Zombies are the perfect model organism for studying neuroscience. In neuroscience, researchers will often manipulate the brain of a model organism like a rat or mouse, and then observe the behaviors through carefully planned testing. Zombie brains are already altered, and these alterations result in some very specific behaviors. Since we can’t get our hands on a real zombie to examine the actual underlying neural damage, we have to infer the damage through careful observations of their behavior. To provide one example, Voytek and Verstynen (2014) argue that, based on characteristics of movement, there are two subtypes of zombies. Type 1 zombies are the prototypical stiff-moving zombie with the slow, lumbering gait and wide-legged stance. And yet, they appear to have little to no trouble initiating or executing goal-directed movement. These zombies very likely have damage to regions of the cerebellum, leaving basal ganglia and cortical motor pathways largely intact. Conversely, Type II zombies can move very quickly and very little difficulty moving from victim to victim. From this motor behavior, we can infer that Type II zombies probably have little, if any, damage to motor areas of their brains. Voytek and Verstynen point out that any motor impairment of Type II zombies is probably more likely due to the fact that their arms and legs are rotting, rather than a specific neural deficit. Type II zombies, however, might lack attentional control, as they appear to move quickly from victim to victim, hardly devouring the first victim before shifting attention to the next.

Using zombie brains and behavior as a backdrop, my goal is to design engaging assignments that help students develop skills to become more efficient learners. Research shows that students who engage in metacognitive strategies, that is, students who learn how to learn, are much more poised to achieve learning outcomes for their courses (for review, see Brown, Roediger & McDaniel, 2014 and Lai, 2011). In this essay, I’d like to share some of these assignments that I’ve used in my classes. But first, I’d like you to imagine you are a student, sitting in your first biopsychology class. Your worst nightmare has come true – your university is now overrun with the flesh hungry undead. You know in your heart that you and your peers must not only learn biopsychology, but also master it, in order to find a cure for this awful affliction and save your campus. To do so, your professor unleashes her plan for training, practice, and ultimate mastery of both biopsychology and the apocalypse:

Strategic Planning Exercises. These weekly reflections are intended to be low stakes formative assignments that help students engage in metacognitive strategies. In this way, students can “strategically plan” for both the zombie apocalypse and for larger stakes assignments. In most semesters, there are four ways a student can complete their strategic planning:

Conduct a necropsy: Students had to find a zombie kill it, and bring it back to their lab for necropsy. After examining the brain, students should write a blog post about their observations. The blog post should describe a brain area or system, the role of that area/system in human behavior, and how it because dysregulated in the zombie brain to produce aberrant zombie behavior.

Video lab notebook: In a video lab notebook, students could video record themselves teaching a topic to me – but that catch is that they must do it with no notes.

Reflection: In this Strategic Planning, students could submit a journal reflection to me, following the prompt, ““Something I learned recently that I found particularly interesting is _____. I think this topic is super cool because _____, and it relates to my life because _____. I was also a bit confused by ____, but one thing I did to help myself understand the content was ____.”

Demonstration: To demonstrate knowledge, students have the opportunity to work either solo or in small groups to create a skit, screenplay, or other artifact reflecting course content – the sillier, the better!

Target Practice. In every good apocalypse, its important to test our aim to make sure we’re actually doing what we should be doing. It would not be a good idea to go into a zombie battle without any target practice, and nor would it be a good idea to begin a high stakes assignment without practice! In this class, Target Practices are low-stakes, progressively cumulative quizzes that students take outside of class time through the learning management system.

Battles. These are the highest-stakes assignments, and this is what students prepare for with the strategic planning and target practice. This is where we take everything we know and go fight those zombies. Students typically have four Battles over the course of the semester. The first Battle asks students to write a short story or narrative where the characters of the story are either brain areas or cells of the nervous system. The functions of the area or cell must be evident from the behavior of the character. Battles two and three ask students to respond to a primary research article in a ‘summarize-connect-apply’ format. The final Battle is a group project. Each group asks a question about aberrant zombie behavior (e.g., as a zombie is ruthlessly devouring your flesh, can it recognize you?”). Each group presents their answer to the class and submits a short written summary of their findings.

By doing these regular assignments, students are less likely to fall behind because procrastination is less of an option. All too often, students sit in classes with unit exams, and don’t begin studying for that exam until a day or two prior (at best!). The student might make a high grade on the exam, but they will likely not retain the material they were tested on. At the start of the semester, I ask students if they’ve ever had experiences like what I just described, and invariably, most hands go up. I take the opportunity to explain to my students that my primary course objective is to help them learn biopsychology and think about it in their everyday lives. To do this, I tell them, I encourage them to start thinking about their own thinking, and start engaging in evidence-informed good learning practices. Using these practices will not only help them in this class, but also in other classes and even outside the classroom. I’ve received good anecdotal feedback from students, saying that they have used strategies like these in their other classes, with good results. I’ve also had students say things like, “The assignments are bad, because they force you to stay on top of the material, but they’re also good, because they force you to stay on top of the material.” I’ll take that as a win.

By taking this class, students are gaining exposure to techniques that should help them think about their own thinking, and experience learning as a process, not as a destination. When students learn to reflect on the course content, it encourages engagement with the course content, as well as engagement with the instructor and their peers. In this way, students start making connections between aspects of their lives and aspects of the course, which further solidifies learning. And, by the way, my students can learn biopsychology in the midst of a zombie apocalypse as they fight to save their campus. Can yours?

References

Brown, P., Roediger, H., & McDaniel, M. (2014) Making it stick: The science of successful learning. Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Lai, E. (2011) Metacognition: A literature review. Retrieved from http://images.pearsonassessments.com/images/tmrs/metacognition_literature_review_final.pdf

Verstynen, T. & Voytek, B (2014) Do zombies dream of undead sheep? A neuroscientific view of the zombie brain. Princeton, New Jersey: Princeton University Press.

Helping Psychology Students Plan and Prepare for Careers and Graduate School

Wed, 02 Dec 2020 19:23:04 GMT

David E. Copeland

University of Nevada, Las Vegas

The psychology major is unique in that there are a wide variety of paths that students can pursue. While having many options can be great, it can also lead to students being unsure about their future. In addition, those that are confident in a path that requires more schooling may not know how to properly prepare for graduate programs. I can relate to this because during my undergraduate years I was initially lost as to what I wanted to do -- and if that was not bad enough, once I thought about what I might do, I was not sure how to prepare!

I designed an Introduction to the Psychology Major course to address these issues, so that students can start planning for their future while in college by getting the most out of the major (Copeland & Houska, 2020). Importantly, I try to set students up for success so that they continue to prepare for careers and graduate school after they finish working with me in my course. In the sections below I first explain why it is important for students to plan their future path, and then I follow that with how I help them with the process and why more programs should offer this course (Norcross et al., 2016).

Why Should Students Plan Out Their Future?

Students should plan their future so they can tailor their college experience to help prepare them for their goals. Those who need to pursue a Ph.D. for their career goals will want to take advantage of opportunities to get involved with research. Students with interests outside of psychology may want to add a minor or a second major – for example, students interested in marketing might want to minor in business or take part in a summer internship.

Another reason is that it can help to take action early. If students want to dive into graduate school after commencement, then they should be applying to programs during their senior year. If students want to start a job right away, they may want to submit applications while wrapping up their courses -- this will improve the odds of having a job lined up. Failing to take these actions early enough in college may lead to an unwanted gap of time after graduation.

Explore the Possibilities

Over the years, I have encountered students at different levels of certainty (or uncertainty) about their career path -- some have one selected, some have no idea, and others fall in between. For example, students in this last group might want to do something related to mental health treatment but may not have thought much about the details. If students do not have a passion about what they want to pursue, make sure that students know that this is okay. Passion can be developed by learning about a field and getting more immersed in it.

Regardless of students’ confidence, I start by presenting them with a list of career possibilities to explore. I also have them fill out career interest/personality tests that are available online or through a campus career center -- however, I warn them that the results are merely suggestions they might consider. Because I know that not every psychology student wants to pursue a career in psychology, I have put together materials about ways that psychology can help prepare students for careers in other areas (e.g., business, medicine, law). A final approach is to encourage students to think about careers that they have noticed in the world around them, but they should know that some careers are not always portrayed accurately in television shows or movies (Smith et al., 2011).

Learn More about Possible Choices

At this stage, I encourage students to learn as much as they can about their possibilities. This includes learning about the career itself, pros and cons of that path, and the skills and degrees that are needed. I find that some students are surprised when they dig more deeply -- for example, some students who originally say that they want to pursue clinical psychology later find that therapy or counseling are better fits for them.

Students can easily find career websites online, but two of the best are O*Net and the U.S. Department of Labor’s CareerOneStop. Students can also access some excellent books about psychology careers. There are some great books that cover mental health paths such as clinical psychology, counseling, therapy, or social work (e.g., Metz, 2016), and there are others that provide perspectives about a variety of careers in psychology (e.g., Sternberg, 2017).

Students can also schedule a meeting with their campus career center to discuss their interests and to learn about resources. Students should be encouraged to utilize their career center regularly -- they should not think about it as a one-time visit. Not only can career centers help them think through career possibilities, but most can help with other preparation such as improving a resume or practicing common interview scenarios.

I have students take things further by building and utilizing a network. One approach is to connect them with fellow students who have similar interests so that they can share information and ask questions (a classroom or online discussion can work for this). In addition, I push students to talk with other high achievers at Psi Chi events. Students should also expand their networks into the professional world by conducting at least one informational interview. Ideally these can be done in person, but with more technological tools available, students have options for communicating with others. To help them out, I provide a set of starter questions that they can use.

Map Out Helpful Experiences and Accomplishments

After students have settled on a small number of career possibilities, they should map out their plans to get there. Students can think about the necessary degrees, skills, and experiences. In addition, I also tell them to identify possible obstacles in their path (e.g., finances, competitive graduate programs) and whether or not they can overcome them.

Mapping out their path serves two big goals. First, students can learn whether a career path is possible -- if not, they should consider other options. Second, it allows students to explicitly plot out what they need to accomplish as they move forward. For example, if they know that they need volunteer or internship experience, they can start making plans now. If they need to earn a Ph.D., they can look for research opportunities. If leadership is important, then they might get involved as a student club officer. I also encourage non-traditional students and those who are working while in school to look at ways in which they are developing skills and building accomplishments in their work environment.

If graduate school is needed, students can reach out to current graduate students. This is helpful because students can hear directly what graduate school is like and whether it would be a good fit for them. Current graduate students can also inform them about what an undergraduate needs to accomplish in order to be an attractive applicant. Some students mistakenly think that a solid grade point average is all that they need to get into graduate school -- it is important that they learn what else graduate school admission committees’ value.

Topics and Assignments

I help them with this entire process by discussing resources and experiences that are related to the psychology major and teaching them the basics about graduate school preparation (Copeland & Houska, 2020). For the former, I teach them about student groups, professional organizations, research opportunities, internship or volunteer positions, and psychology courses. For the latter, I let students know about what graduate programs value, including the importance of letters of recommendation.

An assignment that helps to reinforce the mapping process is to have my students create a Superstar CV -- this also teaches them how to document their accomplishments too. Students start by listing their current accomplishments but take it a step further by adding experiences and achievements that they want to have when they graduate. To distinguish this from their actual CV, I have them use the title “Superstar Curriculum Vitae” at the top and I also have them write their goals in a different font color (to signify that these are not actual achievements. . . yet).

I require some of the activities I described in this article (e.g., Superstar Activity, mapping out their career paths) in my course. However, because not everyone is following the same path and not everyone is at the same stage in their career preparation process, I also create a menu of activities and students choose which of those they want to complete (e.g., visit the career center, attend a Psi Chi event, conduct an informational interview). This way students can take actions that fit their goals.

Continue to Seek Out Information and Refine the Plan

One of my big goals is to encourage students to strive for continuous improvement by learning and acting after they finish my course. I push them to regularly visit the career center for different types of career preparation. I also let them know that their career choices do not have to be etched in stone -- it is okay for them to change their mind. For example, students might complete a summer internship in their desired field only to learn that the field does not seem to be the right fit for them -- I tell them that this is perfectly fine as it is better to learn that now rather than years down the road.

Conclusion

I am a big believer in the idea that we need to be helping students prepare for their futures. Some students might already have career ideas or help from parents, but many first generation students are unaware of the importance of planning for their future path. I have lost track of how many times students have finished my course and told me “I really did not know what to expect from a class like this, but this course was the most impactful class that I have taken -- I now have an idea of what I want to do and what I need to do to get there!” I strongly encourage faculty to develop an Introduction to the Psychology Major course to help prepare their students for the future!

References

Copeland, D. E., & Houska, J. A. (2020). Success as a psychology major. Sage.

Metz, K. (2016). Careers in mental health: Opportunities in psychology, counseling, and social work. John Wiley & Sons.

Norcross, J. C., Hailstorks, R., Aiken, L. S., Pfund, R. A., Stamm, K. E., & Christidis, P. (2016). Undergraduate study in psychology: Curriculum and assessment. American Psychologist, 71, 89-101. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0040095

Smith, S. M., Stinson, V., & Patry, M. W. (2011). Fact or fiction? The myth and reality of the CSI effect. Court Review: The Journal of the American Judges Association, 47, 4-7. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/ajacourtreview/355

Sternberg, R. J. (2017). Career paths in psychology: Where your degree can take you. American Psychological Association.

How Psychology Teachers Can Widely Disseminate Their Innovative Teaching Methods

Fri, 06 Nov 2020 13:46:40 GMT

John M. Malouff and Ashley J. Emmerton (University of New England, Australia)

Abstract

Some psychology teachers develop innovative teaching methods that could benefit other teachers. There are many options for psychology teachers who want to disseminate as widely as possible information about a new teaching method. This article describes a range of dissemination methods psychology teachers can use, including Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, blogs, podcasts, psychology magazines, ERIC, teaching conferences, and teacher training courses. The authors suggest using a cost-benefit analysis to choose dissemination methods.

How Psychology Teachers Can Widely Disseminate Their Innovative Teaching Methods

Using teaching innovations to deliver psychology topics can help improve education by leading to more learning and to more interest in learning (Savelsbergh et al., 2016). Using teaching innovations can also help increase the work satisfaction of teachers (Gordy, Jones, & Bailey. 2018).

Recent teaching innovations involve different types of assignments for students, such as recording a video presentation explaining how to do something relevant to a course and uploading it to YouTube (Malouff & Shearer, 2016). Using an escape room to teach is another innovative method (LaPaglia, 2020). Because teaching is both an art and a science, the possibilities for innovation are great.

Innovation sometimes is forced on teachers by circumstances such as pandemics or wars. Usually, though, teachers innovate to try to find more effective, more efficient, more engaging, or more long-lasting ways to help students learn. The students helped by an innovation can be a subset, such as gifted students (Prochaska & Prochaska, 1983) or non-traditional students (Naz & Murad, 2017), who may face barriers to benefitting from traditional teaching and learning methods. Sometimes we innovate to satisfy our own curiosity or to make our work more interesting.

When these new methods seem to work, teachers often try to share them broadly so that others may benefit from the innovation. To help the most teachers and students, a new teaching method needs to escape the confines of a single classroom and a single school. Other teachers must become aware of the method and its potential value (Smith, 2012).

What modes of dissemination are available?

We identified and evaluated different methods of disseminating information about new teaching methods. The following is a summary of possible dissemination methods, with information on their potential effectiveness based on access statistics (numbers of views, participants, subscribers, or downloads) and engagement level (frequency of comments or interactions between audience and idea developer), along with guides on how to use each method successfully.

Twitter

Twitter has about 330 million users each month (Lin, 2019). Teach Psychology (@getRAPT; n.d.) has used the social media platform Twitter since July 2013 to disseminate innovative teaching ideas, resources and articles for psychology teachers. This Twitter handle has 1,146 followers (at the time of writing) and has posted 1,279 tweets since the handle’s creation. A tweet can have a maximum of 280 characters, allowing only brief descriptions of new methods, unless one posts multiple tweets on a topic or includes links to further resources and articles. The Twitter Guide for Teachers (Pappas, 2013) offers advice for teachers on how to use Twitter effectively.

Facebook

Facebook has a wide reach, with over 2.4 billion monthly users in 2019 (Wolfe, 2019). Teachers can create their own Facebook group about innovative teaching, or they can post their ideas on the page of any of a number of existing groups. We created a Facebook group called Innovative Teaching Methods (2020) to disseminate new teaching ideas. Over 3,000 members have joined in the past 15 months; members come from over 100 different countries and include school teachers and university professors. Members post links to teaching materials they have made and describe their novel teaching ideas. Pappas (2015) offered tips for educators using Facebook for teaching, as does the Facebook Guide for Educators (The Education Foundation & Facebook, 2013).

YouTube

YouTube is a widely used platform, with over two billion monthly users generating a billion hours of viewing daily (YouTube, 2020). Channels focusing on innovative teaching methods such as the Edutopia (2020) channel, which has 125,000 subscribers, can reach a large audience. YouTube allows teachers to demonstrate innovative teaching methods. Users can give responses to new teaching methods using the comments function. For example, an Edutopia video titled Keeping Students Engaged in Digital Learning, published one week ago at the time of writing, attracted 86,553 views and seven user comments. Some comments offered additional strategies beyond those presented in the video. While YouTube tends to be more unidirectional in design than other social media platforms (with the focus on the video itself rather than the comments), the ability to easily share YouTube videos on other platforms such as Facebook and Twitter increases its reach. The Teach Thought (2016) website offers tips for using YouTube for sharing teaching ideas. Teachers can create their own video that they upload, or they can ask to be part of an established video series.

Blogs

A blog is an online journal or information site. Teachers can start a blog on teaching or ask to post an article on an existing blog. E-xcellence in teaching (Society for the Teaching of Psychology, 2020) is a popular teaching blog which allows psychology educators to write about innovative ideas they have used. Obtaining permission to post a guest entry on an existing teaching blog can be much faster and easier than building up readership of a new blog. Blogs can be set up so that readers can request an email when the next entry is posted. Blogs typically allow comments from readers, creating a possibility of interaction with the author. Start Your Teaching Blog (Davis, 2014) offers resources and advice on how to blog effectively.

Podcasts

A podcast is an audio recording that can be downloaded from the Internet. Podcasts discussing innovative teaching methods, such as the Cult of Pedagogy podcast produced by Jennifer Gonzales, can be effective ways of disseminating ideas. This podcast is released twice monthly and averages over 100,000 downloads per month (23,000-30,000 unique downloads per episode; Gonzalez, 2020). The PsychSessions: Conversations about Teaching N' Stuff (Neufeld & Landrum, 2020) podcast consists of 140 episodes focusing on the teaching of psychology and interviews of top psychology educators. The podcast is available over multiple providers making it easily accessible. It might be possible to obtain a guest appearance on a popular teaching podcast. The alternative is to create your own podcast. Like YouTube videos, podcasts are largely unidirectional with limited opportunities for discussion and engagement. The New York Times (Daniels & Schulten, 2020) and Edutopia (Ramirez, 2016) offer advice on how to make a professional podcast.

Magazines

There are online psychology magazines such as Monitor on Psychology (American Psychological Association, 2020) that feature, among other things, articles on teaching methods, lesson plans, and ideas for educators. This magazine is available in print and online, with the online version being free to access. Teaching magazines typically have lower standards for publication than teaching journals. There is advice online, e.g., from Freelance Writing (n.d.), on how to write effective magazine articles.

ERIC

ERIC, the Educational Resources Information Center (2020), puts online published and unpublished articles relating to teaching, with free viewing. ERIC reviews unpublished articles before accepting them, but the acceptance standards are lower than for education journals. We have documents in ERIC, e.g., on how to teach problem solving to college students. Most search engines include ERIC, which has video guides giving advice on submission and writing (ERIC, 2016).

Teaching conferences

National and international psychology teaching conferences and general teaching conferences provide opportunities for disseminating innovative teaching methods. The conferences may focus on teaching in psychology or teaching in general. Keynote speakers can reach hundreds of teachers; other presenters may reach only a handful of attendees. The standard for getting a proposal accepted for presentation can be relatively low, while keynote addresses are by invitation. For tips on giving conference presentations, see online articles such as that of Golash-Boza (2018).

Online MOOCs

Another option for disseminating innovative teaching methods is through massive online open courses (MOOCs). Education providers such as Future Learn and Coursera provide MOOCs to millions of users (Shah, 2016). Students engage with instructors through discussion forums. Some MOOCs are free for students. Tips for delivering MOOCs are available online (Morrison, 2014; Richer 2013).

Things to consider when choosing an outlet

We have described several ways of disseminating innovative teaching methods. When choosing one or more potential outlets, use a cost-benefit analysis. Consider how much time you need to devote to use or try to use the outlet, how likely your idea is to become available on the outlet, how many teachers and teachers in training are likely to learn of your method, and how persuasive the outlet is as a carrier of your idea.

We recommend using multiple outlets for disseminating new teaching ideas in order to reach the most teachers and future teachers. It is possible to provide a link to one type of outlet when using a different type. We suggest trying to use at least one free-online outlet in order to help maximize the number of teachers who become aware of the new method. Finally, we suggest using at least one interactive outlet so that educators can comment and make suggestions. That interaction can help improve a new teaching idea (Lewis, 2003).

References

American Psychological Association. (2020). Monitor on psychology. https://www.apa.org/monitor/

Daniels, N., & Schulten, K. (2020, April 22). Making a Podcast That Matters: A Guide With Examples From 23 Students. New York Times: The Learning Network. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/learning/making-a-podcast-that-matters-a-guide-with-examples-from-23-students.html?campaign_id=55&emc=edit_ln_20200424&instance_id=17889&nl=the-learning-network®i_id=107746693&segment_id=25876&te=1&user_id=2dc49c9f83df8e2ab6a37ac38d0209ea

Davis, M. (2014, June 18). Start your teaching blog: Resources, advice, and examples. Edutopia. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/start-teacher-blog-tips-resources-matt-davis

Edutopia (n.d.). Home [YouTube Channel]. Retrieved April 28, 2020, from https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCdksaQxXH13BMeHo09MorBg

ERIC (2020). https://eric.ed.gov/

ERIC (2016). Grantee and Online Submission System. ERIC. https://eric.ed.gov/submit/

The Education Foundation & Facebook (2013). Facebook Guide for Educators. The Education Foundation website. https://www.ednfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/Facebookguideforeducators.pdf

Freelance Writing (undated). 6 important tips for magazine article writing. Freelance Writing. https://www.freelancewriting.com/magazine-writing/6-magazine-article-writing-tips/

Golash-Boza, T., (2018, March 8). 6 tips for giving a fabulous academic presentation. Wiley. https://www.wiley.com/network/researchers/promoting-your-article/6-tips-for-giving-a-fabulous-academic-presentation

Gonzalez, J. (2020) Cult of Pedagogy: Advertising opportunities for education companies. https://www.cultofpedagogy.com/consulting-advertising/

Gordy, X. Z., Jones, E. M., & Bailey, J.H. (2018). Technological innovation or educational evolution? A multidisciplinary qualitative inquiry into active learning classrooms. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 18(2), 1-23. https://eric.ed.gov/?q=innovation+engagement+enjoyment&id=EJ1182845

Innovative Teaching Methods (2020). Home [Facebook page]. Facebook. Retrieved April 25, 2020, from, https://www.facebook.com/groups/710270882459833

LaPaglia, J. A. (2020, June 1). Liven up review sessions with an escape room. E-xcellence in Teaching. https://teachpsych.org/E-xcellence-in-Teaching-Blog/8940672

Lewis, E. (2003). Dissemination of innovations in higher education: A change theory approach. Tertiary Education and Management, 9(3), 199-214.

Lin, Y. (2019, November 30). 10 Twitter statistics every marketer should know in 2020. Oberlo.https://www.oberlo.com/blog/twitter-statistics

Malouff, J. M., & Shearer, J. J. (2016). How to set up assignments for students to give oral presentations on video. College Teaching. 64 (3), 97-100. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/87567555.2015.1125840?casa_token=KwlufxNVHqQAAAAA:1hkCOBjstSkqEXi6FDvybGCGWU7SSjzC1G1pv9NOrIE1epUn0e3-Ll2tpIAvxTSU1wIGgI5vIdT3qdY

Morrison, D. (2014, February 2). MOOC development advice from instructors that have ‘been-there-done-that’. Online Learning Insights. https://onlinelearninginsights.wordpress.com/2014/02/02/mooc-development-advice-from-instructors-that-have-been-there-done-that/

Naz, F., & Murad, H. S. (2017). Innovative teaching has a positive impact on the performance of diverse students. SAGE Open. https://doi.org/10.1177/2158244017734022

Neufeld, G. & Landrum, E., (2020) PsychSessions: Conversations about Teaching N' Stuff [Podcast]. https://podcasts.apple.com/au/podcast/psychsessions-conversations-about-teaching-n-stuff/id1292340134

Paniagua, A. & Istance, D. (2018). Teachers as designers of learning environments: The importance of innovative pedagogies. Educational Research and Innovation. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264085374-en

Pappas, C. (2013, August 6). The twitter guide for teachers. eLearning Industry website. https://elearningindustry.com/the-twitter-guide-for-teachers

Pappas, C. (2015, May 31). Using Facebook for eLearning: The ultimate guide for eLearning professionals. eLearning Industry website. https://elearningindustry.com/using-facebook-for-elearning-ultimate-guide-for-elearning-professionals

Prochaska, J. O. & Prochaska, J. M. (1983) Teaching psychology to elementary school gifted students. Teaching of Psychology, 10 (2), 82-84. http://web.b.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.une.edu.au/ehost/detail/detail?vid=0&sid=1e4027b1-0223-4876-87ad-904d6b61dd91%40pdc-v-sessmgr06&bdata=JnNpdGU9ZWhvc3QtbGl2ZQ%3d%3d#AN=6797579&db=a9h

Ramirez, A. (2016, February 29). Start that podcast!. Edutopia website. https://www.edutopia.org/blog/start-that-podcast-ainissa-ramirez

Richer, S. (2013, October 7). Tips for designing a massive open online course (MOOC). Northern Illinois University: Faculty Development and Instructional Design Center. https://facdevblog.niu.edu/tips-for-designing-a-massive-open-online-course-mooc

Savelsbergh, E. R., Prins, G. T., Rietbergen, C., Fechner, S., Vaessen, B. E., Draijer, J. M., & Bakker, A. (2016). Effects of innovative science and mathematics teaching on student attitudes and achievement: A meta-analytic study. Educational Research Review, 19, 158-172. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1747938X16300306

Shah, D. (2016, December 25). By the numbers: MOOCs in 2016. Class Central MOOC Report. https://www.classcentral.com/report/mooc-stats-2016/

Smith, K. (2012) Lessons learnt from literature on the diffusion of innovative learning and teaching practices in higher education. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 49(2), 173-182. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/14703297.2012.677599

Society for the Teaching of Psychology (2020). http://teachpsych.org/E-xcellence-in-Teaching-Blog

Teach Psychology [@getRAPT]. (n.d.). Tweets [Twitter Profile]. Twitter. Retrieved April 28, 2020, from https://twitter.com/getRAPT

Teach Thought (2016, February 2). 9 Tips for smarter teaching with YouTube. https://teachthought.com/technology/teaching-with-video-9-tips-teaching-youtube/

Weaver, D., Robbie, D., & Radloff, A. (2014). Demystifying the publication process–a structured writing program to facilitate dissemination of teaching and learning scholarship. International Journal for Academic Development, 19(3), 212-225. https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/1360144X.2013.805692

Wolfe, L. (2019, September 24). The number of Facebook users worldwide. The Balance Career. https://www.thebalancecareers.com/how-many-people-use-facebook-3515067

YouTube (2020) YouTube for press. https://www.youtube.com/about/press

Engaging the Online Learner

Sun, 04 Oct 2020 23:51:35 GMT

Genevieve Condon, MS Forensic Psychology and Legal Studies

Senior Lead Faculty Psychology, Bay Path University, TAWC

It is no surprise that online learning is becoming more popular as time goes on. As of 2019, 65% of students have participated in an online course (Sellers, 2019). With this comes the need to ensure that online education is as dynamic and engaging as its traditional counterpart. While this may seem like tough undertaking, with technology, dynamic staff, and various activities sprinkled throughout the course ensuring that the online learner remains engaged is possible.

Faculty:

When looking at the online learning environment, we want to ensure that we are hiring instructors that are well versed not only in their area of teaching, but in how the online classroom works. This does not simply mean how to navigate Canvas or Blackboard, but rather, being able to anticipate what the students may need. Part of this is going to be real time interaction and various modes of communication (Peterson, 2016). The real-time interaction and various modes of communication can go hand in hand. Students long for interaction so offering a phone call, a live webinar or Skype/Google chat is ideal. Also, posting weekly announcements in video format is useful and adds a personal touch. Students are then able to see the instructors face, and listen to their voice. This may seem small but it adds a visual approach to learning and makes the classroom seem more dynamic.

From a personal perspective, it is also vital to set time aside to “breath”. Technology is flexible and makes individuals easily accessible across different countries and time zones. However, many of us working in education are constantly connected. I know that personally, all my emails go to my phone so I am available even when I am not sitting at my computer. Often, I will find myself out to eat with friends, and replying to an email or sitting at my daughter’s school function doing the same. However, this can get exhausting. Setting expectations are important within the classroom. What are your office hours? Do you typically respond quickly to all emails? I respond quickly, even on weekends and evenings, however, there are evenings I reserve for myself and family, and when the university is closed for breaks, I set this expectation within the classroom. It is important that we take time for ourselves to prevent burnout and ensure that we are at our best for our students.

Another option is to set days for certain tasks. You can reserve Monday’s for grading, Tuesday’s for lesson planning etc. (Sellers, 2019). While this approach may not work for everyone, it can help with time management and enforce a strict schedule for students and help with their expectations. This can aid us in being task oriented and lessen the overwhelming sensation that can come when teaching, especially multiple courses.

Curriculum Design:

When building curriculum and lesson planning, learning to learn is a phrase that is essential to success (Gulati, 2014). Learning to learn can be defined as the ability to create learning goals, motivate oneself to learn, apply learning strategies, and self-reflect to guide future efforts (Gulati, 2014). To ensure that these abilities are met, as an instructor we plan. This requires that we do the following:

Explore: Understand and define what is required. Here, being able to have specific goals for the course will be helpful. These are generally referred to as course competencies.
Plan: After it is understood what is required to learn, identifying the necessary steps and coming up with an action plan is essential. What skills must the students know? How will be assess these skills?
Implement: We must put each step into motion.

Assess: This is where course evaluations and the course requirements are essential. Requiring discussion posts, assignments in the form of papers, videos, etc. to examine what the students have learned and whether the course competencies are met.

Be sure when planning curriculum to step outside of the box. It may be easy to simply require that a paper is written each week, think about how this will keep students engaged if week after week it is the same requirement. There is group work (yes, it is challenging to complete this online but doable), videos they can make, interviews and reflections etc. The sky really is the limit. Make your classroom and curriculum something that students are eager to engage in and leave them looking forward to the next week.

Feedback:

Lastly, asking for feedback is essential. When ensuring that as instructors we are engaged, available and build a dynamic classroom, we must provide a way to assess ourselves, just like we do the students. Typically, the most-straight forward way to do this is by having a survey at the end of each course. To ensure participation, this can be a requirement for the course, otherwise there might not be many participates.

Keeping students engaged is a difficult task. By ensuring as faculty we are using various resources, building dynamic curriculum, and assessing progress, it is an attainable goal. It is crucial to remember that education is an everchanging field and many ideas, tips and tricks will change with time and the ever-changing demographic of online learners.

References

Gulati, R (2014). The importance of goal setting for curriculum design. Medium.

https://medium.com/entelechy/the-importance-of-goal-setting-for-curriculum-design-607618f25cfe

Peterson, A (2016). Five ways to make your classroom more interactive. Faculty Focus.

https://www.facultyfocus.com/articles/online-education/five-ways-make-online-classrooms-interactive/

Sellers, E (2019) Poor time management in online education. Seattle PI.

https://education.seattlepi.com/poor-time-management-online-learning-1435.html

Facilitating Student Application of Social Psychology Concepts to a Real World Problem

Sun, 06 Sep 2020 14:57:50 GMT

Jennifer M. Knack (Clarkson University) and Melisa A. Barden (Walsh University)

As many instructors can likely attest, there is a certain joy that comes from a student making a connection between course material and their everyday lives. Perhaps they let you know about a recent episode of their favorite show that utilized operant conditioning or how they stopped their younger sibling’s tantrum by breaking a cookie in two due to a lack of conservation. Since we knew that it is beneficial to the learning process to make these types of connections, we set out to create a project aimed at facilitating this process. In addition, we believe it is important for our students to understand that this field can have actual real world implications when it comes to making a difference in areas that matter such as social justice, parenting, education, workplace issues, sustainability, and conservation. For this semester-long group project, we focused on problems in the world that students would be motivated to reduce/solve. Due to our large class size our students worked in groups, but it could be adjusted to an individual project. Social psychology is an area that is well-positioned to apply psychological concepts to address real world problems/issues which is why we created the project in this specific course. However, it could be adapted to a different course such as Human Development or Principles of Learning. 

Purpose and goals of the project
We designed this project to give students the opportunity to identify a real world problem or issue they are personally interested in and deeply consider what the problem is and why it continues to exist despite other people trying to address it. Then, students are tasked with proposing a solution that is grounded in evidence from social psychology. This project is designed to encourage students to think critically and creatively to identify root causes of the issue as well as factors that contribute to the issue persisting. Throughout the semester students complete smaller assignments that engage them in this type of thinking. At the end of the semester, students produce a final paper report and give a presentation in class. In addition, students will use the campus “maker space” (i.e., a space on campus where students can produce physical objects and receive assistance in the design and production of the physical objects as well as digital create products including making or editing videos, audio, or photography) to produce a tangible product appropriate to their proposed solution. As such, this project is designed to help students develop and improve written and oral communication as well as gain experience in the maker space.

Major components of the project

Phase 1: Identify and evaluate a problem. Students first write a problem statement that conveys the scope of the problem and the specific aspect they will address this semester (assignment 1); then students identify and evaluate specific barriers and factors that created and maintained the problem, consider who is involved in it, and what has already been done to address the problem (assignment 2). The main purpose of this phase is to help students more deeply understand the problem they selected and to guide them to understanding the inherent social issues or nature of the issue. In addition, this phase helps students consider how large issues (e.g., climate change) are comprised of smaller issues that may have different causes and therefore need to be addressed differently (e.g., reducing use of plastic bags, conserving water). In this phase of the project, students are also encouraged to consider why they selected this issue (i.e., why it is important to them personally and as a group) and why it is important at a societal/community level. By the end of this phase, students should be able to (1) identify the opposing perspectives and barriers that have created the problem/issue and impeded resolution, (2) consider who is impacted by the problem/issue (e.g., who is involved, who experiences the ramifications), and (3) determine what is currently being done to address the problem/issue. For example, by the end of phase 1, students might have decided to address reducing the use of plastic bags because they are particularly concerned about the resulting harm to marine animals.

Phase 2: Gather evidence and consider solutions. Over the course of two assignments, students start brainstorming ways to address the issue (assignment 3) and gather evidence from the social psychological field to support and improve their proposed solutions (assignment 4). During this phase, students are encouraged to revisit their problem statement to ensure that their solutions and evidence are actually addressing the initial problem they identified. Sometimes students will inadvertently stray from their original path throughout the course of their research. By the end of this phase, students should have a clear plan for how to address the issue as well as evidence from the social psychological field indicating why the plan should be successful. For example, students may consider banning plastic bags in stores or consider how information about attitude change and behavior change can be used to get people to use reusable bags.

Phase 3: Final proposal. The project culminates with three outcomes. First, each group prepares a written paper that summarizes their work throughout the semester. The paper is comprised of a description of the real world issue being addressed, a full explanation outlining the major aspects of the issue, a proposed plan to address the issue that is clearly supported and informed by social psychological information, and a brief summary of how to evaluate the success of the proposed plan. Second, each group presents their project to the class during the last week of the semester. Third, each group creates a tangible product in the university’s maker space. This product should be relevant to the group’s proposed plan to address the issue; groups are encouraged to be creative in what this product is. Groups can create something using the digital maker space (e.g., a podcast, commercial, public service announcement) or the physical maker space (e.g., 3D print a template, create bumper stickers, design flyers). For example, students might create a token to serve as a reminder that people can put on their car to prompt them to bring reusable bags into the grocery store (e.g., a sticker, some sort of device) or a public service announcement raising awareness about the need to use reusable bags.

Group member evaluations. Despite this project being designed to be engaging and relevant to students, there is always a risk of social loafing. In an effort to reduce social loafing, at the end of each phase students complete self and peer evaluations to rate each person’s contributions and efforts to the group work. Students who do not contribute to the group’s work will have their scores reduced.

Final thoughts

In our experience, this project has been quite successful. It is worth noting that many students are often concerned about the project at the beginning of the semester since it differs from traditional academic papers that many college instructors require. Students are often worried about coming up with a solution and concerned about thinking creatively. In addition, students typically want to skip straight to developing a solution before they have carefully considered what the problem is and understand the complexity of it. Students often benefit from more coaching and intensive feedback during the first phase of the project. We provide extensive comments on the first two assignments and strongly encourage groups to meet with us to discuss their project development throughout the semester. Students also tend to appreciate the first two assignments being graded more leniently so they can explore and consider the selected problem without fear of  their grade being negatively affected.

As students get into the project, they report (anecdotally and on student evaluations) that they found the project meaningful and valuable. Students appreciate working on a project that has personal relevance as well as real application. For example, we have numerous students who plan to pursue health careers; these students have been in groups that examined the misconception that vaccines are associated with autism as well as how to recruit and retain physicians in rural regions. Other students interested in careers in law enforcement have examined how to address the divide between police and the community; students interested in sustainability have examined how to increase water conservation. 

Overall, this project can satisfy a number of learning outcomes. Not only are the students gaining a better understanding of course material, but they are working on their communication (oral and writing) and interpersonal skills which are incredibly important. It also encourages critical and creative thinking. Finally, this project has the potential to elicit real change in our world if the students are motivated to move forward with their solutions.

What Psychology Faculty Need to Know about Psychology Career Pathways

Wed, 05 Aug 2020 12:24:36 GMT

Peggy Christidis and Jessica Conroy

American Psychological Association

The mission of APA’s Center for Workforces Studies (CWS) is to collect, analyze, and disseminate data that is relevant to the psychology workforce and education pipeline. CWS has looked extensively at the psychology education pipeline, focusing on psychology degree recipients at the master’s and doctoral levels, but in recent years, there has been a growing interest in understanding our psychology bachelor’s degree recipients. In particular, we were interested in knowing what psychology baccalaureates are doing with their degrees once they graduated. Are they moving on to graduate school? If so, are they continuing with a psychology graduate degree, or a degree in a different major? How many psychology baccalaureates are entering the workforce? What types of jobs are they doing? What sorts of skills are they developing during their undergraduate study and using most often at their jobs? Do these skills coincide with the types of skills employers are looking for? Our goal was to collect vital statistics about career trajectories, outcomes, and the psychology job market, as well provide useful resources and tools for psychology faculty and students exploring their future careers. Our research has led to several findings which contribute to the corpus of knowledge currently available, which psychology faculty and students can use to understand their postgraduation options.

What do you do after receiving a psychology bachelor’s degree?

According to data from the 2017 National Science Foundation’s National Survey of College Graduates, there were approximately 3.5 million people in the United States with a bachelor’s degree in psychology. For two million of these people (56 percent), the psychology baccalaureate was their highest degree earned, meaning most students directly enter the workforce after graduating.

The remaining 1.5 million (44 percent) did obtain a graduate degree, but not necessarily in psychology. In fact, 1.1 million (30 percent) of psychology bachelor’s degree holders obtained a master’s or doctoral degree in a field outside of psychology. Approximately 13 percent of psychology baccalaureates went on to receive a psychology master’s degree, and only four percent obtained a doctoral degree in psychology (to learn more about degree pathways in psychology, CWS provides an interactive data tool: https://www.apa.org/workforce/data-tools/degrees-pathways).

These findings suggest that the degree pathways of psychology baccalaureates do not necessarily lead to a psychology graduate degree. In fact, this path is the one least traversed. This information has implications regarding what elements of a psychology degree should be emphasized and which skills should be taught to prepare students entering the workforce. As such, psychology faculty and students should be aware of the types of occupations psychology baccalaureates are entering after graduation.

What jobs can you get?

According to NSF’s 2017 National Survey of College Graduates, 72 percent of the two million psychology bachelor’s degree recipients were employed. Another 24 percent were not in the workforce for various reasons, such as being retired, leaving the workforce temporarily for family reasons, or working on another degree but not having earned that degree just yet. Only 4 percent were unemployed.

For the 72 percent who were actively employed, what were their occupations? Psychology baccalaureates cited 92 different types of occupations, including counseling, accounting, marketing, personnel, and insurance. However, most often noted were occupations such as “social workers” (5 percent), “management-related positions” (5 percent), “administrative occupations” (5 percent), and “service” (4 percent). Three percent also had occupations as top-level managers, executives, and administrators (to learn more about careers in psychology, CWS proves an interactive data tool: https://www.apa.org/workforce/data-tools/careers-psychology).

Individuals with a psychology bachelor’s degree as their highest degree are clearly finding employment, in a variety of occupations. This finding suggests that the psychology bachelor’s degree, at the very least, is giving the degree recipient skills and abilities that are transferable to a number of different occupations and make them well-suited candidates for management and leadership roles. As such, faculty and students need to be aware of the types of skills that are developed during a baccalaureate education so that students can both recognize the occupations they are suited for and capable of entering, as well as market themselves effectively when seeking employment.

Skills and the psychology job market

So, which skills are important? Understanding the skills that students acquire during their education, those they need in the workforce, and how those skills are changing over time, is of vital importance to preparing students for life after graduation. Unfortunately, there are few sources of information on this topic, so how can we know which and even if the skills students are earning in their programs are being used in the workplace? To begin addressing this question, we have explored and analyzed multiple sources to understand the skills used on the job, as well as the skills employers are looking for.

To access the demand for skills from an employer perspective, we used a text analysis of psychology job advertisements pulled from the APA psycCareers job board (APA, 2018a). This provided unique and valuable insights into the skills employers are looking for in psychology fields and a snapshot of how those skills are changing over time. To complement these data, we also performed analyses on interviews from the APA’s “How Did You Get That Job?” webinar series and of the O*NET database to find the most important skills for performing psychology jobs. Using these three data sources, we were able to identify several important skills that employers are looking for, as well as skills that are vital to performing psychology occupations. It is important to note that while employers may be placing a high emphasis on certain skills, it may not indicate the skills that are actually being used on the job, but rather, the skills that employers are having the most trouble finding in their candidate pool.

Which skills do employers want?

Using a keyword-based decision-tree, we identified the skills requested in all the job advertisements posted to the APA psycCareers job board over a three-year period; from 2015 through 2017. This dataset consisted of 6,922 advertisements, approximately 48% of which were for health service psychologist positions and 37% of for faulty positions. The remainder were for researcher (6%), applied psychologist (4%), and other positions (5%). Across all job types, the most frequently requested skills included “leadership,” “cultural awareness,” “teamwork,” and “communication.” However, the pattern changed when examined by job type.

Employers looking for faculty candidates requested “cultural awareness” most frequently, followed distantly by “leadership” and “teamwork” skills. Postings for health service positions, on the other hand, requested “leadership,” “teamwork,” and “communication” the most and at almost the same rates. Unsurprisingly, “analytical skills” were most requested among researcher positions, and “communication” and “leadership” skills took the lead for applied psychology positions which included human factors, consulting, and forensic psychology.

Over time the frequency of advertisements requesting at least one skill has increased, with 45% of advertisements posted in 2015 increasing to 49% in 2016 and 54% in 2017 (APA, 2018b). When broken out by skills requested, we found that some skills were increasing in frequency more than others. Specifically, cultural awareness, which overtook leadership skills as the most requested in 2017. Teamwork and communication skills also increased in frequency between 2015 and 2017. An investigation into these trends found that the increase in requests for cultural awareness was driven primarily by advertisements for faculty positions, while the increase in requests for teamwork and communications skills was likely driven by ads for health service positions. These trends have important implications for students and early career psychologists looking for positions in these fields. They may indicate areas of increased emphasis, such as a shift in the health services field towards interdisciplinary care. They may also indicate the skills that employers are having difficulty finding in the candidate pool (Burning Glass Technologies, 2015). As such, psychologists on the job market should consider highlighting some of the more sought skills that they possess and developing those that they don’t.

Which skills will you use?

Accessing the skills used on the job for psychology degree holders is extremely limited by the available data sources. To gain an understanding of these skills, we used a two-fold approach, using both a small dataset of 18 interviews from the APA’s “How Did You Get That Job?” (HDYGTJ) webinar, and an analysis of occupations requiring a higher than average knowledge of psychology from the Occupational Information Network (O*NET).¹ The HDYGTJ Interviews consisted primarily of applied psychologists, while the O*NET analysis used the average importance of psychology to job performance to determine which occupations to include, and therefore includes jobs that are performed by individuals with or without a degree in psychology.

The analysis of HDYGTJ Interviews consisted of methods like those utilized in the psycCareers analysis, using an automated key-word search to identify the skills mentioned most frequently. Analyzed questions included a description of the interviewee’s current position, similar job titles for the role, and the most valuable skills and abilities acquired during their training. This analysis identified communication skills, analytical skills, and critical thinking skills as the most frequently used and most useful skills in day-to-day job performance.

The O*NET analysis consisted of filtering the database for occupations with an importance of psychology higher than average for day-to-day job performance (386 of 967 total occupations represented in the O*NET database).² Across these occupations, we then averaged the importance scores for the 35 different skills included in the O*NET database. Similar to the HDYGTJ findings, communication skills like active listening and speaking, and critical thinking had the highest average importance scores.

These findings can be used to help point students and early career psychologists in the right direction when exploring their current skill profile and options for professional development. Furthermore, understanding the skills gained during training and how those can be leveraged on the psychology job market is an important steppingstone for success, and one that should not be ignored.

Conclusion

Psychology students often turn to faculty for information and guidance regarding the next step after graduation, whether that be graduate school or entry into the workforce. As such, it is essential to provide psychology faculty with the necessary data and statistics to help inform their students. It is also important to recognize the variety of pathways from undergraduate psychology education. While some psychology baccalaureates obtain graduate degrees in psychology, more sizable proportions obtain graduate degrees in other fields or go directly into the workforce. Students that follow that latter pathway could benefit from information about employment options, how to find a job, the skills they should highlight when looking for employment, and a general understanding that a wide range of career pathways exist beyond a graduate education in psychology. We hope that both psychology faculty and students will take advantage of the tools, reports, and statistics that CWS offers, and that these resources will provide them with the information they need to make informed decisions about the many education and career opportunities that are available to psychology baccalaureates.

For more information on the Center for Workforce Studies and the various resources we have available for psychology students and faculty, visit our website at www.apa.org/workforce.

References

American Psychological Association. (2018a). 2015-17 Psychology Job Advertisements: An Overview. Washington, DC: Author

American Psychological Association. (2018a) 2015-17 Psychology Job Advertisements [Unpublished special analyses]

Burning Glass Technologies. (2015). The human factor: The hard time employers have finding soft skills. Retrieved from https://www.burning-glass.com/wp-content/uploads/Human_Factor_Baseline_Skills_FINAL.pdf

National Science Foundation, National Center for Science and Engineering Statistics. (2017). National Survey of College Graduates Public Use Microdata File and Codebook. Retrieved from https://sestat.nsf.gov/datadownload/

Footnotes

¹Source: This information is from the O*NET 24.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. The American Psychological Association has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications

² Importance was scored on a scale of 1 (not important) to 5 (very important). Ratings were based on survey data collected from representatives in each occupation and input by occupational experts with years of experience in and around the occupation. Additional information on O*NET knowledge definitions and methodology can be found at https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html#overview

Suggested Resources

CWS Data Tools - https://www.apa.org/workforce/data-tools/index

APA’s “How Did You Get That Job?” webinar - www.apa.org/members/your-growth/career-development/how-did-you-get-that-job/index.aspx

O*NET OnLine tools for career exploration - https://www.onetonline.org/

Mapping a Thesis to Find Your Way as a Writer

Tue, 07 Jul 2020 17:36:17 GMT

Brien K. Ashdown¹and Jana Hackathorn²

¹Hobart & William Smith Colleges

²Murray State University

Correspondence concerning this article should be sent to Brien K. Ashdown, PhD, Hobart and William Smith Colleges, 300 Pulteney Street, Geneva, NY 14456; ashdown@hws.edu.

As the American Psychological Association includes writing as a major undergraduate learning outcome (APA, 2013), meaning that teaching psychological writing skills is of the utmost importance. However, actually teaching students how to write can be pain-staking and tedious, for a wide variety of reasons. One notable reason is that students struggle to build cohesive arguments in their introductions or research proposals. Having students draw a metaphorical map of their own or a peer’s writing can help students focus on the importance of structure and flow when writing the introduction section of an empirical article. This activity could help students get one step closer to effective writing skills in methods courses.

Teaching How to Write Can Be Frustrating

The American Psychological Association (APA, 2013) includes writing as a major learning outcome in the undergraduate psychology education. As a result, teachers find this skill to be important and there are a plethora of how to guides and resources full of best practices (e.g., Giuliano, 2019; Ishak & Salter, 2016). Despite the professional guidance, many instructors find teaching students how to write strong papers of significant length is challenging, vexing, or even unenjoyable (Ishak & Salter, 2016). Teachers report myriad reasons for this struggle. For example, students with minimal writing experience tend to have an unrealistic beliefs about how much time and effort they will need to create a high quality piece of writing, often underestimating the required effort (Walvoord & McCarthy, 1990). Often, students confuse introduction sections with annotated bibliographies, and thus write in a way that lacks structure or a coherent argument. As a result, the flow of many students’ introduction sections or literature reviews are choppy and hard to follow (Baumeister & Leary, 1997). Add to this the significant amount of time and effort it takes for instructors to provide quality feedback (Ishak & Salter, 2016), and it’s no wonder that many instructors find the process of teaching students how to write fatiguing and frustrating.

In our classrooms (and we assume in most of yours,) we tend to see a lot of student writing that contains introduction sections that are really nothing more than a series of strung-together independent paragraphs, each one providing a review of a different (hopefully) relevant article. It seems students believe that providing this list of article summations is sufficient to construct a coherent argument—yet any of us who have read this kind of writing know how painful these types of papers are to read and grade. Moreover, this type of writing tends to lack critical thinking which involves the evaluation and synthesis of their chosen literature, to create the actual underlying argument (Ishak & Salter, 2016).

One frequently used tactic to help with this problem is peer assessment (see Ramon-Casas et al., 2018, for a review). Although there are some variations in how this works in each classroom, students generally exchange papers and then give each other feedback (Falchikov & Goldfinch, 2000; Guilford, 2001; Ramon-Casas et al., 2018; Venables & Summit, 2003). These kinds of activities typically happen in the classroom or as homework, but tend to be effective, especially for lower achieving students (Ramon-Casas et al., 2018). Importantly, to be effective, instructors need to provide specific instructions, such as rubrics, on how students should work to provide good feedback (Ramon-Casas et al., 2018). More specifically, instructors should tell students what they should look for (i.e., simply telling students to “read and provide feedback” isn’t enough!). We’ve found that this often does not solve the problem of a lack of flow and structure in introductions. After all, why would writers who don’t know how to do this effectively be able to help other writers in doing it?

We’ve learned that by providing the students with a clear metaphor for the peer editing work they do increases the quality of the feedback they give their classmates. We call this metaphor Mapping a Thesis, and we tell students to envision their peer’s writing as a map that will move them from point to point. The key the success of this activity is having each student draw a literal map of their peer’s argument—which makes very clear quite quickly where the failures of structure and flow are lurking.

Mapping a Thesis

Before putting students into pairs to begin the peer workshop, we tell students to think about a popular tourist activity that many of them might have participated in at some point—a city walking tour. One of us teaches at a school in the Northeastern USA, and many students who come from that area have at some point participated in The Freedom Trail that is laid out through and around Boston, Massachusetts (https://www.thefreedomtrail.org/). This particular walking tour is approximately 2.5 miles long, and takes participants on a loop that includes visits to more than a dozen historic sites (such as Boston Common, the site of the Boston Massacre, and Paul Revere’s house). Participating on The Freedom Trail is simple—you simply have to follow the red line that has been painted on the sidewalks. As we discuss The Freedom Trail (or a similar type of walking tour that students in your area might be more familiar with), we talk with students about how the point of the red line is to take tourists from one point of interest to the next in the most logical way possible.

This is the point at which we shift from talking about city walking tours and tell students that the main points or topics of their papers are the points of interest in their own and their peers’ writing. Sometimes these main points are formatted section headings and subheadings, and sometimes they are not. We explain that often identifying and describing these points of interest is the easiest part of the writing an introduction section. The challenge is constructing the red line that will carry their readers from one point of interest (e.g., a main point or topic) to the next point of interest in a clear, logical, and meaningful way. Creating that red line, or in other words maintaining the flow and structure of their argument from one point to the next, is the challenge we ask them to focus on specifically in the peer workshop activity.

After putting students into pairs during class and having them swap papers, we provide them with a blank piece of paper. We tell them to read their peer’s paper, marking it anyway that makes sense to them (e.g., typos, spelling, grammar, etc.). Then, after they have finished reading the entire paper, we tell them to draw a map, of their partner’s introduction section. Many students struggle a bit with this at first, but with some encouragement and prodding, they can get to the point of thinking about their peer’s paper as a map that carries them along from one point of interest to another until they arrive at the end (which we explain is the section that describes the project’s hypotheses). We tell students to indicate the points of interest or main topics in the paper, and then draw lines that show how the writer moved or meandered from one topic to the next. We also tell students to write notes along those connecting lines to highlight the ways that the writer made (or didn’t make) that transition in a clear and logical way.

Once students begin, they often realize how frustrating it is to map an introduction that has no structure, flow, or coherent argument. Most of them can find and identify the points of interest, but quickly realize there is very little, if any, clear path to connect the very next point. This provides a fast lesson in the importance of making sure that their own writing has a clear structure and flow (which often requires a re-write to create).

After students have finished reading and drawing their maps, they spend time in their pairs sharing and discussing the maps they made of each other’s work. The hope, of course is that this conversation is fruitful and respectful. In the end, the feedback should help the writer to think about how to re-design the paper to provide the flow and structure that is missing on both a macro and microlevel.

Does It Work?

Via a quick data collection process that could have been much more scientifically rigorous, we asked students in one of our writing-based classes to respond to a few questions about the Mapping a Thesis activity. The responses were anonymous and collected at the end of the same day as the activity. All of the students in the class reported that the activity was useful and helpful for them in understanding their peer’s paper. One said, “Breaking down the details helped me understand what the heck was going on” and another stated, “It helped me focus on their argument.”

About two-thirds (62%) of them said that mapping their peer’s paper helped them understand how to better construct the flow and argument of their own paper. For example, one student claimed that “this exercise allows you to see if your paper flows nicely when read by others…what makes sense in your head could confuse others.” Another student said, “It makes me think about whether my own intro flows well. Whether I have properly elaborated on my areas of interest.”

Finally, the vast majority of the students (92%) said that the drawing their peer did of their own paper was useful in improving the structure of their paper as they worked on the subsequent draft. One student stated: “It helped me to see my thoughts. Sometimes things I know in my head isn’t clear to everyone else and she was useful in seeing that.” And another student succinctly said: “As they are going into this blind, so if they don’t know what I mean, [then] I need to address this.”

Conclusion

We still share the frustration that many instructors experience when attempting to teach students how to write well. Like many others, we often focus our time and attention on issues of grammar, syntax, APA formatting, and other writing mechanics because, to be blunt, that’s a lot easier to teach than how to structure a cohesive, logical, and flowing argument or synthesis of the literature. Getting our students to understand the necessity of creating such an argument is still difficult and at times infuriating, not only for us but the students, as well. However, we believe that the Mapping a Thesis activity has made our task a bit easier and made us more successful teachers of writing in the process. The flexibility inherent in the assignment has allowed us to use it in ways that best fits with our current goals (evaluations vs. synthesis), the level of the class we’re teaching (intro vs. methods), and at the time of the semester that makes the most sense for that particular course. In fact, it’s an activity that we ourselves have begun using in our own writing as a tool to ensure our arguments flow clearly and logically.

References

American Psychological Association. (2013). APA guidelines for the undergraduate psychology major: Version 2.0. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/about/psymajor-guidelines.pdf

Baumeister, R. F., & Leary, M. R. (1997). Writing narrative literature reviews. Review of general psychology, 1(3), 311-320.

Falchikov, N., & Goldfinch, J. (2000). Student peer assessment in higher education: A meta-analysis comparing peer and teacher marks. Review of educational research, 70(3), 287-322.

Guilford, W. H. (2001). Teaching peer review and the process of scientific writing. Advances in physiology education, 25(3), 167-175.

Giuliano, T. (2019). The “Writing Spiral”: A Practical Tool for Teaching Undergraduates to Write Publication-Quality Manuscripts. Frontiers in psychology, 10, 915.

Ramon-Casas, M., Nuño, N., Pons, F., & Cunillera, T. (2019). The different impact of a structured peer-assessment task in relation to university undergraduates’ initial writing skills. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education, 44(5), 653-663.

Venables, A., & Summit, R. (2003). Enhancing scientific essay writing using peer assessment. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 40(3), 281-290.

Walvoord, B. E., & McCarthy, L. P. (1990). Thinking and Writing in College: A Naturalistic Study of Students in Four Disciplines.

Getting More Mileage out of Class Activities: "Sneaky Teaching"

Mon, 01 Jun 2020 17:01:05 GMT

Joshua D. Fetterman (Chestnut Hill College) & Meredith E. Kneavel (La Salle University)

The first thing that everyone learns about teaching is that class time is a valuable, and scarce, resource. Every teacher has run out of time during a lecture, and consequently let valuable points slip through the cracks. As a field, psychology is full of fascinating information, and there just isn’t class time for all of it. In our classes we have dealt with this issue by trying to find ways to use class time more efficiently and economically. In this essay, we will propose one way of doing this, what we term “sneaky teaching.”

In a way, sneaky teaching is exactly what it sounds like, sneaking more information and opportunities for learning into a lecture. Some people have used similar terms to describe either methods of increasing students’ use of efficient, empirically backed study habits (McMurtrie & Barrett, 2018) or ways of connecting psychological concepts with common student experiences (Laster, 2018). We define sneaky teaching as concurrently working multiple learning objectives into singular acts of pedagogy in order to teach not just one concept, but integrate and reinforce multiple concepts throughout the curriculum. In other words, sneaky teaching is connecting peripheral concepts that might otherwise be lost to central curriculum features.

This is a powerful concept that can be used in many different ways. It can be used to scaffold student understanding of central themes, provide rich psychological examples, and to help students see connections. In particular, it’s a great way of working information that has somehow fallen out of your curriculum back in. As a case in point, there has been a 10% decrease in baccalaureate programs that offer “history and systems in psychology” courses from 2005 to 2014, and among those that offer it, only about half require it (Norcross et al., 2016). This is unfortunate given the rich history of psychology. One way to prevent information from history and systems courses from completely falling out of a curriculum is to incorporate that information into other courses where it connects with the materials in those courses. For example, most personality textbooks mention factor analysis in order to explain the origin of the Big Five theory of personality (e.g., Carver & Scheier, 2017). This is a perfect opportunity to mention Raymond Cattell, who used factor analysis voraciously and is partly responsible for the popularity of this technique, and his controversial theories and ideas that ultimately prevented him from receiving the Gold Medal Award for Life Achievement from the American Psychological Foundation (Hergenhahn & Olson, 2007). The information about factor analysis is more prominent and more closely related to course objectives, but “sneaking in” the facts about Cattell contextualizes the information and makes it more interesting to students. The information can also be reinforced again in a statistics course when discussing factor analysis. In this way, Raymond Cattell and his contributions to psychology can be verified by multiple professors in the department, especially if a history and systems course has been dropped from the curriculum.

Sneaking in auxiliary information such as stories and anecdotes not only has the effect of packing a greater amount of content into classes, but also can help students better attend to, and later recall, information. Although there is uncertainty about the length of the typical undergraduate attention span (Wilson & Korn, 2007), research indicates that the longer students sit in lecture the more likely their minds are to wander which negatively predicts performance on later evaluations (Risko, Anderson, Sarwal, Engelhardt, & Kingstone, 2012). One solution to this problem is a “task switch,” a brief change in the orientation of the lecture that allows students to later return their attention to the primary task (Risko et al., 2012). Sneaking ancillary information into lectures that briefly changes the subject and reorients students’ attention may serve such a purpose while at the same time providing them with additional information and context.

It is important to note that our position on this subject is that we probably do quite a bit of sneaky teaching without realizing it. Indeed, when preparing this essay, we realized that we integrate and connect seemingly divergent information in our courses commonly. However, our hope is that by being more cognizant and mindful of the way we incorporate sneaky teaching into our classes we can utilize it even more frequently in the future. In what follows, we will describe a few ways that we have mindfully ‘snuck’ extra information into our classes.

Within-subjects ANOVA and binocular vision

Although students often find information about design dry, most research methods and statistics courses cover within subjects ANOVAs. One way to spice up the discussion of this topic is with an activity where students count how many times they can accurately pass a ball back and forth. They do it once with their left eye shut, then with their right eye shut, and then with both eyes open. Before analyzing the results with a within subjects ANOVA, have a brief discussion of binocular vision, and then have students make predictions about what condition should have the most accurate passes. This incorporates the concepts of sensation and perception and the visual system into a statistics course and forces students to think critically about the predictions they will make about the effects of different treatment conditions on the dependent variable.

Correlation and the Yerkes-Dodson Law

One of the assumptions of correlation is that the relationship between the variables must be linear (Privitera, 2012). In order to illustrate a linear relationship it is helpful to contrast it with a non-linear relationship. One famous example of a non-linear relationship is the Yerkes-Dodson Law (and it’s many formulations, see Teigen, 1994). Because many of the variables that are related to performance follow the Yerkes-Dodson law, it is helpful to relate these to common student experiences. For instance, one can discuss exam anxiety and performance: that some anxiety will improve performance, as it is helpful for concentration and dedicated studying; however, too much anxiety is impairing and leads to a drop off in performance. This phenomenon also occurs with athletic performance. Some anxiety, or what athletes call ‘being in the zone,’ leads to peak performance, but too much can significantly impair performance, while not enough will lead to poor performance. What is definitely clear is that there is a relationship between anxiety and performance and this relationship is non-linear. This would be missed with linear correlational methods. We find it particularly helpful to draw example scatterplots with performance on the y-axis and anxiety or stress on the x-axis.

Theory and Hypothesis Generation and B. F. Skinner

When explaining ways to generate theories and hypotheses, an anecdote about B. F. Skinner and the partial reinforcement effect can illustrate the fact that sometimes you just get lucky. Skinner reportedly discovered the partial reinforcement effect because on one particularly nice spring day he didn’t want to spend hours making food pellets for his experiments for the upcoming week, and realized that if he were to reinforce his subjects after ever other correct response, he would need half as many pellets. Ultimately he found that this made his subjects much more resistant to extinction (Pelham & Blanton, 2007).

Factorial ANOVA and Gender and Stress Interactions

In describing factorial ANOVAs, one example is that males and females react differently to chronic stress. Males under chronic stress tend to perform poorly on spatial memory tasks while females show little to no effect of stress in both spatial memory tasks as well as physiological correlates (Luine, 2002). It is helpful to draw a line graph illustrating the interaction effect and describing that interactions are usually seen as non-parallel lines and that when reporting factorial ANOVAs significant interactions are of primary importance followed by main effects. This allows for discussion of gender differences and physiology of behavior.

Memory and Effects of Chronic/Traumatic Stress

When teaching about memory systems, health psychology or biopsychology can also be incorporated. The work of Sapolsky (2001) and others more recently (e.g., Piccolo & Noble, 2018) has found that hippocampal volume is decreased in those with Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and in those reporting high levels of perceived stress.

Failure of Groups to Share Unique Information and Group Polarization

Counterintuitively, group members often do not share information that only they know with other group members. This is a complex phenomenon, but it can be illustrated in an engaging way by replicating Stasser and Titus’s (1985) classic study on groups’ failure to share unique information (see Fetterman (2017) for ideas about how to do this). During this activity, where students are divided into groups and must pick a candidate for student body president, ask individual students for their opinions on the candidates both before and after group discussion. Individual opinions should become more polarized after group discussion.

Operational Definitions Activity

One of our favorite opportunities for sneaky teaching involves an activity where students watch a cartoon, count the number of aggressive acts that they see, decide upon an operational definition for aggression, and then counts the aggressive acts again. Typically, students’ ratings will be much more similar after they have developed a shared understanding of what constitutes an aggressive act (i.e., created an operational definition). For a more detailed explanation of this activity, see Kneavel, Fetterman, and Sharp (2019). This activity offers a multitude of opportunities to work in outside concepts and can be used in multiple course as described in Kneavel et al. (2019). Males and females tend to engage in different kinds of aggression; males are more physically aggressive and females are more relationally aggressive (Card, Stucky, Sawalani, & Little, 2008). Consequently, males may count a higher number of aggressive acts when watching the cartoon. Assuming that students’ counts do converge on the second observation, the standard deviation from the first count should be larger than the standard deviation on the second count. This provides an opportunity to discuss measures of dispersion and the characteristic of sets of numbers that they reflect. Because students are making observations, and learning how to make those observations consistently, it is a great opportunity to discuss the difficulties associated with observational research and with developing interrater reliability. Finally, Loftus and Palmer (1974) demonstrated that the wording of questions individuals are asked about their memories can influence the content of those memories. After watching the cartoon, ask half of the students to make ratings of how aggressively the characters in the cartoon “interacted,” and the other half how aggressively the characters “fought.” These leading questions may replicate Loftus and Palmer’s classic finding.

As can be seen, opportunities for sneaky teaching are bound only by our imaginations. These connections not only help us to use class time more efficiently, but also break up lecture and help students to remember more information. It can also be a way to weave in dropped material. Finding ways to sneak more content into our classes has become a fundamental consideration for our curriculum development and reinforcement of core concepts, and we hope it will become one for you, as well.

References

Card, N. A., Stucky, B. D., Sawalani, G. M., & Little, T. D. (2008). Direct and indirect aggression during childhood and adolescence: A meta-analytic review of gender differences, intercorrelations, and relations to maladjustment. Child Development, 79, 1185-1229. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8624.2008.01184.x

Carver, C. S., & Scheier, M. F. (2017). Perspectives on personality, 8th edition. New York, NY: Pearson.

Fetterman, J. D. (2017). Information sharing in small groups: A classroom activity. In S. Baker (Ed.), Teaching tips: A compendium of conference presentations on teaching, 2017-2018 (pp. 197-199) . The Society for the Teaching of Psychology. http://teachpsych.org/resources/Documents/ebooks/teachingtips3.pdf

Hergenhahn, B. R., & Olson, M. H. (2007). An introduction to theories of personality, seventh edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Prentice Hall.

Kneavel, M. E., Fetterman, J. D., & Sharp, I. R. (2019). Making operational definitions come alive with aggression. Essays from E-xcellence in Teaching. https://teachpsych.org/E-xcellence-in-Teaching-Blog/6980590

Laster, B. (2018). Sneaky pedagogy: How to utilize students’ implicit knowledge and make psychology real. In W. Altman, L. Stein, & J. E. Westfall (E ds.), Essays from e-xcellence in teaching (Vol. 18, pp. 54-57). site: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/eit2019/index.php

Loftus, E. F., & Palmer, J. C. (1974). Reconstruction of automobile destruction: An example of the interaction between language and memory. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 13, 585-589. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0022-5371(74)80011-3

Luine, V. (2002). Sex differences in chronic stress effects on memory in rats. Stress (Amsterdam, Netherlands), 5(3), 205.

McMurtrie, B., & Berrett, D. (2018, December 6). How one university uses ‘Sneaky Learning’ to help students develop good study habits. The Chronicle of Higher Education. https://www.chronicle.com/article/How-One-University-Uses/245265

Norcross, J. C., Hailstorks, R., Aiken, L. S., Pfund, R. A., Stamm, K. E., & Christidis, P. (2016). Undergraduate study in psychology: Curriculum and assessment. American Psychologist, 71, 89-101. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0040095

Pelham, B. W., & Blanton, H. (2007). Conducting research in psychology: Measuring the weight of smoke, 3rd edition. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

Piccolo, L. R., & Noble, K. G. (2018). Perceived stress is associated with smaller hippocampal volume in adolescence: Perceived stress effects in adolescent brain. Psychophysiology, 55(5), e13025-e13025. doi:10.1111/psyp.13025

Privitera, G. J. (2012). Statistics for the behavioral sciences. Washington, DC: Sage.

Risko, E. F., Anderson, N., Sarwal, A., Engelhardt, M., & Kingstone, A. (2012). Everyday attention: Variation in mind wandering and memory in a lecture. Applied Cognitive Psychology, 26, 234-242. DOI: 10.1002/acp.1814

Sapolsky, R. M. (2001). Atrophy of the hippocampus in posttraumatic stress disorder: How and when? Hippocampus, 11(2), 90-91. doi:10.1002/hipo.1026

Stasser, G, & Titus, W. (1985). Pooling of unshared information in group decision making: Biased information sampling during discussion. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 48, 1467 – 1478.

Teigen, K. H. (1994). Yerkes-Dodson: A law for all seasons. Theory & Psychology, 4, 525-547. Retrieved from: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Karl_Teigen/publication/247743193_Yerkes-Dodson_A_Law_for_all_Seasons/links/550efd360cf21287416afd07/Yerkes-Dodson-A-Law-for-all-Seasons.pdf

Wilson, K., & Korn, J. H. (2007). Attention during lectures: Beyond ten minutes. Teaching of Psychology, 34, 85-89. Retrieved from: https://oia.arizona.edu/sites/default/files/2016-08/Beyond%20Ten%20Minutes.pdf

Liven Up Review Sessions with an Escape Room

Sat, 02 May 2020 00:44:15 GMT

Jessica A. LaPaglia (Morningside College)

You walk into a dimly lit room. The door slams behind you. A timer counts down from 60 minutes. Escape or die.

Okay, you won’t really die, but this scenario illustrates a typical escape room. People pay to be trapped in a room with their friends and find clues that will lead to their escape. When gamifying my general psychology class, I sought to make each review session unique. We played review jeopardy, bingo, pyramid, and trivia… but I needed an idea for the last exam. Then I remembered the local escape room in town and “Escape the Evil Professor” review game was born. I learned a lot from creating my first escape room. Students want to be challenged, move around the room, and solve puzzles. In this essay, I will describe the escape room that I created in my Research Methods course as an approach to review material prior to an exam. I will also discuss alternative ways to incorporate escape rooms into the classroom.

Research Methods in Psychology is not a favorite class among my students. Their eyes either glaze over or show sheer panic when we cover statistics. I typically use an exam review session to provide students with a practice exam and cover their muddiest points. However, with the buzz surrounding course gamification, I wanted to try something different. Jeopardy review is always fun, but is limited to testing students on key words and concepts. I needed a method that allowed students to practice skills like running statistical tests and interpreting data. An escape room, which can involve both practicing skills and retrieving key concepts, seemed like a great option for a review session.

Sixteen students (primarily 2nd and 3rd year psychology majors) walked into the review session and took their seats. Projected on the screen was a torture room scene and several students laughed. As soon as class began, I shut the door, pretended to lock it, and gave my best evil laugh… something like “Bwahahaha!” The goal was to sing a specific song to me, the evil professor, to appease me and escape the room. Students were instructed to get into groups of three or four to solve my riddles. Each group had a slightly different set of clues (and a different song to sing) so that the escape room was not over once one group finished, but instead each group had the opportunity to escape the room. Although it is fine for all groups to have the same clues, different clues for different groups can reduce the likelihood of cheating. Below, I briefly describe each of the challenges that students completed to escape the review session.

Challenge 1 covered scales of measurement. Students identified the scale of measurement from each example. The responses were a clue to identify your next challenge.

Rating happiness on a scale of 1 to 7: ________

The order that students completed an exam: _______

Number of friends that one has: _________

Gender: ________

Responses to the above items corresponded to a code on one of ten envelopes scattered throughout the room. Each group had a different order for the items above. For instance, the correct code for the puzzle above was IORN (for Interval, Ordinal, Ratio, and Nominal). Within the envelope was the next challenge.

Challenge 2 was a crossword puzzle that covered threats to internal validity. At the top of the crossword read “Once completed, an author will be revealed. This is your clue to access the next challenge.” The highlighted letters in the crossword were an anagram for one of the authors of one of several research posters hanging in the room. When they looked behind that poster, they found an envelope with instructions for the next challenge. Each group had different letters highlighted, and therefore a different poster, to look behind.

Challenge 3 allowed students to practice their skills analyzing data in Jamovi (a free statistical program). Each group was provided with a different data set. The instructions are below.

The Evil Psychology Professor wants to find the best way to torture her students. She sets up and experiment in which students were either given complex homework assignments or boring instructional videos to watch at home. These assignments/videos either covered research methods concepts or statistics concepts. She had them then rate their dissatisfaction with the course on a scale from 1 (this class is great) to 10 (this is the worst class I have EVER taken).

Open the data set on Moodle called “Torture” and use the data set in the “Torture 1” tab. Analyze the data with the appropriate statistical test. When you are done, examine the data and find the cabinet with the results that most closely match your own. Your next challenge will be in that cabinet.

Challenge 4 gave students practice with ANOVA tables. Within the correct cabinet, they were provided with an ANOVA table with several values missing. Students solved for F which was the password to an online quiz. Once again, each group was provided with a different ANOVA table.

Challenge 5 was an online quiz that tested students on types of validity. Each group had their own unique quiz. They could take this quiz as many times as was required to get 100%. Once they received 100%, the song that they needed to sing to the evil professor was revealed.

To ensure that students completed every challenge, there was a 2-min penalty if students found clues meant for a different group. Each group received two hint cards in case they got stuck on a particular challenge. All groups finished within 30 minutes. We spent the remainder of the class period reviewing the correct responses for each challenge. Following the review, I measured student perceptions using a subset of questions from the Intrinsic Motivation Inventory (IMI; Self-Determination Theory, 2018) and five days later, student learning was measured in a short-answer exam worth 70 points.

The escape room was well perceived by students with overall enjoyment mean rating of 6.47 out of 7. More importantly, the escape room led to better performance on the exam. Exam items that had been included in the escape room (48 out of 70 points) were compared to items that had not been included in the escape room (22 points). Students performed significantly better on concepts included in the escape room compared to those that were not. This effect persisted into the final cumulative exam. See LaPaglia (2020) for full results.

It is well documented that testing students is a powerful way to enhance retention of course material (Roediger et al., 2011; Roediger & Karpicke, 2006; Rowland, 2014). Furthermore, testing makes it more apparent what students do and do not understand (Balch, 1998). Delivering this benefit in an exciting way can improve enjoyment and intrinsic motivation. Since creating this escape room activity, a colleague of mine tried it out in her own classroom. She brought in props (such as color-coded picture frames with clues embedded in the frames themselves) to enhance the escape room experience. Monoghan and Nicholson (2017) created an elaborate escape room within a pathophysiology course. The goal of this escape room was to diagnose and properly treat a patient in under an hour. This activity combined team-based learning with the pressure and puzzles associated with escape rooms. It may be necessary to have students adequately prepared for the activity to ensure participation by all. Borrego et al. (2017), for instance, required students to complete specific assignments prior to entrance into the escape room to ensure they were prepared.

I have had several individuals comment on how difficult this might be for an instructor to develop such an elaborate review session. However, the escape room challenges could be substituted with simple review questions or “stations” around a room. Ragan (in press) had introductory psychology students complete a series of stations that involved engaging in an activity, completing questions about the activity that corresponded to a code on a lock box, then combining clues within in each lock box to escape the classroom. Additionally, any one of the challenges described in this paper could be used on their own; for instance, a crossword puzzle to review key concepts from that week (there are free crossword puzzle creators available online). It might also be advantageous to have students develop their own escape rooms to test their peers over the material (Nicholson, 2018). Students in a cognitive psychology class could use insight problems and logical fallacies to challenge peers in an escape room. Whatever the method, using an escape room is a fun way to incorporate testing to enhance learning of the course material.

References

Balch, W. R. (1998). Practice versus review exams and final exam performance. Teaching of Psychology, 25, 181–185. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15328023top2503_3

Borrego, C., Fernandez, C., Blanes, I., & Robles, S. (2017). Room escape at class: Escape games activities to facilitate the motivation and learning in computer science. Journal of Technology and Science Education, 7, 162-171. https://doi.org/10.3926/jotse.247

LaPaglia, J. A. (2020). Escape the evil professor! Escape room review activity. Teaching of Psychology, 47(2), 141-146. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628320901383

Monaghan, S. R., & Nicholson, S. (2017). Bringing escape room concepts to pathophysiology case studies. Journal of Human Anatomy and Physiology Society, 21, 49–62. https://doi.org/10.21692/haps.2017.015

Nicholson, S. (2018). Creating engaging escape rooms for the classroom. Childhood Education 94(1), 44–49. https://doi.org/10.1080/00094056.2018.1420363

Ragan, C. (2019, June 27-28). Escape the (class)room! [Paper presentation]. Psychology One Conference, Durham, NC, United States.

How to Elicit Curiosity and Deeper Learning through Poetry in Psychology Courses

Mon, 06 Apr 2020 20:27:37 GMT

Justina M. Oliveira (Southern New Hampshire University )

Correspondence concerning this article should be sent to Justina M. Oliveira, PhD, SNHU 2500 North River Rd, Manchester, NH 03016; j.oliveira@snhu.edu.

As a field, psychology is ripe for opportunities to bridge its content to the dynamic and artistic world around us. As a means of building a more engaging and challenging class experience, I have incorporated the arts into my Social Psychology course in multiple ways: through photography, poetry, and music (which is essentially lyrical poetry). The focus of this essay is to provide a window of discovery in which educators can peer in to glimpse one example of how I’ve used poetry in psychology classrooms. I also discuss a bit about why poetry is an effective tool in the classroom to evoke deeper learning. I am however, no expert in poetry. I enjoy poetry, write a little of it, but have little experience formally studying poetry and even less training in writing it. However, my students have voiced extreme interest in the enveloping of psychology content into poetry and have often surprised me with their passion and talent and at times, even writing their own poems for an assignment in the course. This is a testament that a classroom environment energized with curiosity to learn together through perceived nontraditional assignments and activities such as those connecting with the arts, can be a surprising vehicle in which to capture psychology content. Poetry specifically “is a special, highly evocative form of speech that at once triggers new concepts, emotional responses, behaviors, and values” (Van Buskirk, London, & Plump, 2015, pp. 59). Van Buskirk and London (2012) explain how students can learn more deeply and in a holistic manner through poetry given its power in this way to evoke curiosity, energy, and engagement.

STEAM strategies

The use of poetry in psychology courses is well-aligned to the growing trend of adding arts into STEM courses (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), resulting in the updated acronym STEAM. More specifically, the scientific field of psychology could utilize poetry to build students’ understanding of human motivation, attitudes, and behaviors in a meaningful way. STEAM is a teaching movement that originated from the Rhode Island School of Design through their NSF funded workshop in 2011 and is now growing in use by numerous educational institutions with instructors at various education levels (stemtosteam.org, 2017). The basis of STEAM strategies is that the uncertainty of the economic future combined with the creativity and innovation required in the current workplace, results in the need for arts to be added to traditional education (Maeda, 2013). I argue psychology should play a role in such integrated strategies.

We educators with backgrounds in psychology and related fields could benefit from the concepts involved in this STEAM movement. Innovative uses of STEAM strategies have been published in recent years which provide insights to its usefulness (e.g., Gregorio et al., 2015; Guyotte et al., 2014; Keane & Keane, 2016; Patton & Knochel, 2017). The goal of STEAM is to encourage the integration of disciplines which have traditionally been taught in a compartmentalized manner.

Poetry in Psychology

The field of psychology is invested in integrating the arts into psychology-related research and practice (think art therapy but also research on what aspects of art influence our perceptions of it). The existence of APA’s Division 10: The Society for the Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity and the Arts is evidence of this. This division publishes the journal of Psychology of Aesthetics, Creativity, and the Arts which incorporates research in all artistic domains including poetry. For example, in this journal, Lüdtke et al. (2014) published interesting work regarding poetry’s ability to evoke emotional responses such as empathy. The results of their study “indicate that general surface and affective features of a piece of literature alone are not enough to understand and explain emotional involvement and aesthetic appreciation” and that “only the interaction between reader and text brings a poem to life” (pp. 373). Their research findings explaining the more holistic understanding of the power of poetry is quite useful. I think as a field however, we can do a better job at integrating the arts, including poetry, into our teaching.

Psychology educators have the goal of actively engaging students in the process of learning as seekers of knowledge compared to as passive receivers of course content. Student learning can be enhanced through unexpected assignments (such as poetry in psychology courses), which may help them pay attention to how psychology is relevant to the broader world around them. Such assignments can provide our students with opportunities to combine their creativity of expression through poetry (both traditional forms and the poetic nature of music lyrics) with psychology content learning.

Recent innovative uses of STEAM strategies, which provide insights to its usefulness, range from creative problem solving in a music technology program with students from traditional STEM backgrounds (Gregorio et al., 2015) to the use of poetry to understand metaphors, values, and emotions within the leadership and ethics training with West Point cadets (Van Buskirk et al., 2015). Van Buskirk et al. (2015) state that metaphors often found in poetry allow students to “transfer not only conceptual understanding but emotional tone as well from one domain to another. These emotions may be both tacit and explicit, coherent or in conflict, conscious or unconscious, but they are almost always present in some way” (pp. 58). Van Buskirk and London (2012) have found that the use of poetry in management courses can shift the classroom climate to one that is more personal, higher in energy, and evokes greater levels of critical thinking. Psychology, too can benefit from this approach.

The Assignment

I created, used, and shaped the assignment (see Appendix A for full assignment directions) over the period of four years with undergraduate students in my Social Psychology course who were both psychology and non-psychology majors. I have used this or a very similar version of the assignment across 11 sections during this timeframe with about 325 students total. After using the assignment the first few times, I elicited anonymous feedback from students right after they completed it. Overwhelmingly, students enjoyed the experience of integrating poetry with the constructs we’d covered in social psychology. They found it interesting, stated I should continue using the assignment in future courses, and that it aided in their learning of the content. They also felt the in-class activity utilizing the poetry they found was helpful to getting to know their fellow classmates better. See Appendix B for samples of the poems students found for the assignment. One of these poems is written by the student herself and the others are existing poems students found relevant to the assignment. Please email me to see examples of students’ full write-ups.

The Assignment as the Basis for a Classroom Activity

On the day students bring in this assignment to share in small groups, during the first 20 minutes of class, I share a few poems including (Rupi Kaur’s poem ‘First be Full on Your Own’) with the class and we discuss them as aligned to the assignment prompts. Then, they do Kuhn and McPartland’s (1954) Twenty Statements Test on self-concept. This involves students writing 20 statements about themselves with the only prompt that each statement must start with the phrase “I am…”. I then go over a bit more about the topics of self-concept with students, especially in regards to social psychology and we have a discussion on how these “I am” statements uncover information about their self-concept. This discussion naturally leads to a conversation around culture and dual attitudes, two other topic choices within this assignment. At this point, the full class is on the same page in regards to understanding all the assignment topic choices (we had discussed violence and prosocial behavior, the last topic choices as related to social psychology a few weeks prior). In the next phase of the class period, students share their poems in small groups. They tend to listen attentively and follow along with the extra copies when each group member reads the poem they chose out loud. They make guesses as to the topic that student likely chose given their poem and they have a conversation around what it meant to them and why. I typically end the class period with debriefing the common topics students seemed to choose that class and some students share their poem with the class as a whole for additional reflection. I end the class period by showing a video of Maya Angelou reciting her poem ‘Still I Rise’ to allow students to see the visual power of poetry when seeing someone share their own written work out loud to a bigger audience. We finish by taking the time to connect this poem to Social Psychology topics of discrimination, culture, and ingroups/outgroups. This class period never fails to be a time of deep reflection, high levels of engagement, and an opportunity to build a brave and safe classroom environment that helps us to dig into the topics throughout the rest of the semester.

References

Gregorio, J., Rosen, D.S., Morton, B.G., Halula, A.M., Caro, M., Scott, J., Kim, Y., & Lindstrom, K.M. (2015). Introduction to STEAM through music technology (evaluation). Proceedings of the ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition.

Guyotte, K.W., Sochacka, N.W., Costantino, T.E., Walther, J., & Kellam, N.N. (2014). Steam as social practice: Cultivating creativity in transdisciplinary spaces. Art Education, 67(6), 12-19.

Keane, L., & Keane, M. (2016). STEAM by design. Design and Technology Education, 21, 61-82.

Kuhn, M.H., & McPartland, T.S. (1954). An empirical investigation of self-attitudes. American Sociological Review, 19(1), 68-76.

Maeda, J. (2013). Artists and scientists: More alike than different. Scientific American . https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/guest-blog/artists-and-scientists-more-alike-than-different/

Patton, R.M., & Knochel, A.D. (2017) Meaningful makers: Stuff, sharing, and connection in STEAM curriculum. Art Education, 70, 36-43.

Rhode Island School of Design. What is STEAM? (2017).

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/rqatwv4jucuzta8/AAALR9HO0A2YyuNgtcdw8B6ma?dl=0

Van Buskirk, W., London, M., & Plump, C. (2015). Poetry and poetic metaphor in teaching leadership and ethics . Journal of Leadership Studies, 9(1), 56–62.

Appendix A & B can be accessed at: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/rqatwv4jucuzta8/AAALR9HO0A2YyuNgtcdw8B6ma?dl=0

Nazis, Wizards, & Superheroes: Using Case Studies to Bolster Class Effectiveness

Tue, 03 Mar 2020 01:28:02 GMT

Wind Goodfriend (Buena Vista University) & Thomas Heinzen (William Paterson University)

In B. F. Skinner’s Walden Two, the fictional Professor Burris reflects on his long teaching career (Skinner, 1948, p. 6-7) with the following regret:

“My [former students] would gape with ignorance when I alluded to a field that we had once explored together—or so I thought—but they would gleefully remind me, word for word, of my smart reply to some question from the class or impromptu digression… I would have been glad to let them all proceed henceforth in complete ignorance of the science of psychology, if they would forget my opinion of chocolate sodas or the story of the amusing episode on a Spanish streetcar.”

Many of us have experienced the chagrin that Skinner is describing. Our students may choose to pay attention to our personal stories or anecdotes, focusing on what happened instead of the more important (in our opinion) point of why the story came up in the first place, and how it’s tied to the psychological topic of that day’s class. Why do students care about the stories? Because the stories are real, personal, engaging, and help the students see the psychology all around them, in their everyday lives.

Instead of dismissing such stories as regrettable distractions (as Skinner seems to be doing), why not capitalize on the power of story in the classroom? The effectiveness of case studies won’t be a surprise to those of us who have been showing pictures of “classics” in the history of psychology, such as Phineas Gage, Clive Wearing, Little Albert, and Kitty Genovese. We argue here that faculty should use case studies more. Walter Mischel noted the power of a good case study when he wrote (Mischel, 1979, p. 741):

“We all know that our students may ignore the weighty evidence we painstakingly convey in our lectures while to our dismay they remember for years one dramatic case study example or personal anecdote.”

And in the influential book Make It Stick, about how to master the effectiveness of lectures, Brown, Roediger, & McDaniel (2014) started almost all their chapters with a powerful case study. How can we use case studies more explicitly in our classes? Here are two examples.

Example 1: Non-Fiction

Almost all of us discuss the infamous Milgram studies, at least in Intro Psych. It’s a powerful procedure with even more powerful results. For years, we [the authors] emphasized to our students the “power of the situation” and that most of the participants went all the way to 450 volts—and that they (the students) would probably have done the same thing. In other words, many teachers focus on the peer pressure and power of obedience inherent in Milgram. Even Milgram knew the importance of case studies; he included in his book Obedience to Authority quotations from people who did go “all the way,” like this one (1974, p. 87):

“I said, ‘Good God, he’s dead; well, here we go, we’ll finish him.’ And I just continued all the way through to 450 volts.”

But here is a perfect opportunity to use case studies to inspire students to go against the self-fulfilling prophecy of giving in to obedience and peer pressure. Consider August Landmesser, shown in the link below, refusing to participate in the Nazi salute:

Image: https://rarehistoricalphotos.com/august-landmesser-1936/

Landmesser was in love with a Jewish woman, so he stood up against authority and instead let his ethics guide his choices. That choice came at a great cost: His lover died in a concentration camp, and he died in a German penal battalion. But he didn’t give in. And Milgram saw this in his own participants—one third didn’t go to 450 volts. In Chapters 4 and 6 of Obedience to Authority, he profiles participants who disobeyed, and why.

When a participant hesitated, Milgram’s experimenter prodded them with phrases such as they “had no other choice” but to continue. One man, a Dutch immigrant who had seen Jewish people persecuted during the War, stopped at 255 volts and responded by stating (p. 51):

“I do have a choice. Why don’t I have a choice? I came here on my own free will. I thought I could help in a research project. But if I have to hurt somebody to do that, or if I was in his place, too, I wouldn’t stay there. I can’t continue. I’m very sorry. I think I’ve gone too far already, probably.”

In perhaps the most poignant case in the entire study, another participant refused to continue after 210 volts. She was a German immigrant who had been raised in the Hitler Youth program. After disobeying and being asked why she stopped, she calmly responded, “Perhaps we have seen too much pain” (p. 84). These are the case studies we want to emphasize to our students—these are the ones we want to inspire them in the future, when they remember our classes.

Example 2: Fiction

Students certainly spend a lot of their free time engaging in popular culture, including videogames, streaming TV, and movies. So, appealing to these interests may help students feel connected to the material. Here we discuss two examples of popular culture and how they relate to psychology.

First: Attachment Theory is a common subject in a wide variety of psych courses (Intro, Development, Relationships, Social, etc.). In the original model, Bowlby (1958) suggested three attachment styles. Each style results from how children interact with their primary caregiver and later causes different behavioral patterns in romantic relationships. All three styles are illustrated well in the trio of main characters in Harry Potter (see Goodfriend, 2007).

Harry grew up as an orphan being abused by his aunt and uncle; this results in his fearful/avoidant attachment. He struggles with close relationships in adolescence, showing the tendency to isolate himself when possible. Despite attraction to girls, he avoids interacting with them and only responds when they take the initiative.

In contrast, Ron shows an anxious-ambivalent style. His parents were inconsistent with him, sometimes showing love and support and sometimes being distracted or playing the role of harsh punisher. His attachment style comes out when he creates a co-dependent relationship with his first girlfriend (Lavender) and becomes highly jealous of Hermione’s interest in anyone except himself.

Finally, Hermione displays secure attachment. Her parents consistently showed her loving support, resulting in her high self-esteem, confidence, and choice of boyfriends because of mutual respect and common intellectual interests (e.g., Viktor Krum).

Second: Many courses also discuss the development of the “self” and self-concept. A common theory is Higgins’s (1987, 2012) self-discrepancy theory, which describes the actual, ought, and ideal self. The struggle between selves may be most salient when considering superheroes who have a secret identity. Which identity is their “actual” self, and which is their “ideal?” Can both really exist simultaneously? And is either of these selves reflective of social expectations and standards—thus, the “ought” self?

Wonder Woman, or Diana Prince, reveals these questions in interesting ways (see Goodfriend & Formichella-Elsden, 2017). While her “real” name is Diana, the character of Diana Prince that she plays to the public (e.g., glasses and a nurse or secretary role) is covering up the “actual” self she has in the extraordinary abilities she shows as Wonder Woman. Her love interest often compares the two women explicitly. He tells Diana, for example, that she’s acceptable—but nothing in comparison to Wonder Woman. He thus loves only one aspect of her.

Many panels from the original comic strips and books display her struggle between these parts of her self. Those early panels also present a public that judges her positively (e.g., when she helps the U.S. military defeat enemies) or negatively (for what are considered “scandalous” clothes for the time). These judgments again relate to the ought self. The example of Wonder Woman—or any other similar superhero with multiple sides of life—leads to interesting class discussions and memorable applications of Higgins’s ideas to students’ own lives.

Conclusion

Other people have noted the utility of case studies in the classroom (e.g., Krain, 2010, McManus, 1986, Oliver, 2019). Milgram himself knew the power of case studies in making a point. In Obedience to Authority, he wrote (1974, p. 44):

“We need to focus on the individuals who took part in the study not only because this provides a personal dimension to the experiment but also because the quality of each person’s experience gives us clues to the nature of the process.”

Individual instructors should, of course, feel free to select both fictional and non-fictional case studies that speak to them, personally. Students can sense authentic engagement and will enjoy their professors’ expertise about particular cases. One of us (Wind) enjoys discovering psychological insights already lurking in fictional popular culture, especially from wizards and superheroes. The other (Tom) derives similar enjoyment and meaning from discovering non-fictional historical details like the story of August Landmesser.

Choosing a range of studies from different contexts will likely be best for the variety and diversity of student interests in a given class. Regardless of the specific cases chosen, use of case studies appears to be a promising way to keep students engaged within the classroom, to help them retain material for testing purposes, and to apply those insights to the complicated lives they are already living (Bromley, 1986; Rolls, 2015).

References

Bowlby, J. (1958). The nature of the child’s tie to his mother. International Journal of Psycho-Analysis, 39, 350-373.

Bromley, D. B. (1986). The case study method in psychology and related disciplines. Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Brown, P. C., Roediger, H. M., & McDaniel, M. A. (2014). Make it stick: The science of successful learning. Cambridge, MA: Belknap Press.

Goodfriend, W. (2007). Attachment styles at Hogwarts: From infancy to adulthood. In N. Mulholland (Ed.), Psychology of Harry Potter (pp. 73-88). Dallas, TX: BenBella Books.

Goodfriend, W., & Formichella-Elsden, A. (2017). Multiple identities, multiple selves? Diana Prince’s actual, ideal, & ought selves. In T. Langley & M. Wood (Eds.), Wonder Woman psychology: Lassoing the truth (pp. 139-149). New York, NY: Sterling.

Higgins, E. T. (1987). Self-discrepancy: A theory relating self and affect. Psychological Review, 94(3), 319-340.

Higgins, E. T. (2012). Regulatory focus theory. In Van Lange, P., Kruglanski, A. W., & Higgins, E. T. (Eds.), Handbook of theories of social psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 483-504). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Krain, M. (2010). The effects of different types of case learning on student engagement. International Studies Perspectives, 11, 291-308.

McManus, J. L. (1986). “Live” case study/journal record in adolescent psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 13(2), 70-74.

Milgram, S. (1974). Obedience to authority. New York, NY: Harper-Perennial.

Mischel, W. (1979). On the interface of cognition and personality: Beyond the person–situation debate. American Psychologist, 34(9), 740-754.

Oliver, J. A. (2019). Essays from E-xcellence in teaching (Vol. 18). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology Web site: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/eit2019/index.php

Rolls, G. (2015). Classic case studies in psychology (3^rd ed.). New York, NY: Routledge.

Skinner, B. F. (1948). Walden two. New York, NY: MacMillan.

Interdisciplinary Education as a Route to Promoting Psychology across Occupations

Wed, 05 Feb 2020 03:57:56 GMT

Submitted by Manisha Sawhney and Natalie Ciarocco Editors, E-xcellence in Teaching Essays

Stacie M. Spencer

MCPHS University

Justina M. Oliveira

Southern New Hampshire University

Mollie A. Ruben

University of Maine

Christine Blais

Southern New Hampshire University

Lori A. Nugent

MCPHS University

P erceptions of the value of psychology as a discipline have an impact on majors and non-majors that carry into students’ personal and professional lives. Despite the popularity of the major (124,497 bachelor’s degrees were awarded in 2017; APA, 2018a), the incredibly large number of students taking introduction to psychology (1.2 to 1.6 million undergraduates each year; Gurung et al., 2016), and the seemingly endless list of possible applications of psychological concepts and skills to real-world situations, many people (majors and non-majors) continue to believe psychology is the study and treatment of mental illness. With this belief, the valuation of psychology is determined by the degree to which the discipline successfully addresses mental health concerns, and the valuation of the psychology major is determined by the degree to which the job obtained after graduation falls under the umbrella of mental health professions (the highest valuation going to jobs with “psych” in the title).

What can psychology instructors do to change this misperception of the discipline and improve the valuation of the major? The APA Committee for Associate and Baccalaureate Education (CABE) formed two working groups that are approaching the issue from different angles. The Introduction to Psychology Initiative is developing recommendations for learning goals, outcomes, course designs, and methods of assessment that, among other things, are intended to improve the public face of psychology (APA, 2019). The Skillful Psychology Student working group established an evidence-based list of seventeen employer-valued skills that fall into five skill domains (cognitive, communication, personal, social, and technology; APA, 2018b) and are currently developing resources for students, teachers, and advisors to explicitly connect coursework and experiential learning opportunities to direct-entry jobs.

Interdisciplinary Education (IDE)

We suggest one powerful way to improve perceptions of the value of psychology knowledge and skills among students, in and outside of the major, and faculty across disciplines is through interdisciplinary education (IDE). Our definition of IDE borrows from the Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education definition of interprofessional education (IPE) established in 2002 (CAIPE, 2019) to provide a pedagogical model designed to prepare health professionals for the demands of modern healthcare. We define IDE as occurring when instructors from two or more disciplines design and facilitate learning experiences and/or students from two or more majors collaborate to solve a problem or answer a question. IDE experiences that include psychology as one of the represented disciplines provide the opportunity for majors and non-majors to learn and apply psychological concepts and to experience, first-hand, the value of psychological concepts and skills in real-world settings. Majors and non-majors can spread knowledge and skills developed through IDE and positive attitudes regarding the value of psychology when they go out into the workforce.

The goal of IPE is to prepare students to provide interprofessional collaborative care that results in improved quality of patient care, patient safety, and patient satisfaction. The four competencies developed through IPE include the abilities to (1) apply the values and ethics for interprofessional practice, (2) recognize and integrate the roles of one’s own profession and the roles of others’ professions to address patient and population needs, (3) communicate with others (patients, families, other health professionals) in a way that supports a team approach, and (4) apply concepts of team dynamics to perform effectively as a team (Interprofessional Education Collaborative, 2011).

As with IPE, the goal of IDE is to prepare students for the reality of future collaborative teams which are comprised of individuals with different education backgrounds (majors, degrees) and experiences (coursework, field work). This preparation should result in improved quality of decisions, products, and/or client satisfaction due to the development of competencies like those established for IPE. Expanding beyond healthcare applications, the four competencies developed through IDE include the abilities to (1) apply the values and ethics for interprofessional practice, (2) recognize and integrate the knowledge of psychology and the knowledge of others’ disciplines/professions to address problems, projects, and/or client needs, (3) communicate with others (clients, colleagues) in ways that support a team approach, and (4) apply concepts of team dynamics to perform effectively in a team.

Research shows that IDE supports the development of the abilities to think critically, recognize bias, tolerate ambiguity, and acknowledge and appreciate ethical concerns (Goldsmith, Hamilton, Hornsby, & Wells, 2018). More generally, through IDE, students can develop skills within all five of the skill domains identified by the Skillful Psychology Student working group. These include critical cognitive skills (critical thinking, judgment and decision making), personal skills (adaptability, integrity, self-regulation), and social skills (collaboration, inclusivity). Depending on the nature of assignments, students can also develop communication skills (oral and written) and technological skills (flexibility/adaptability to new systems, familiarity with software).

What does IDE look like in the classroom?

There are many possible IDE models with varying degrees of complexity. The simplest model involves one instructor who teaches a course that includes students from a variety of majors. In this model, students work in teams with representatives from different majors to examine a problem. Individual team members are tasked with identifying knowledge and skills from their respective majors that can be used to address the problem and then teams come together to generate solutions using the collective knowledge and skills. For example, students might tap into their respective disciplines (e.g., psychology, sociology, anthropology, business) to gather information and consider skills associated with conflict between groups and then to develop recommendations for addressing inter-group conflict.

A second model includes instructors and students from two courses that interact at several points throughout the semester. For example, the instructors and students for a personality theories course and students from a cultural anthropology course might discuss personality in the respective courses and then come together to compare and contrast the different perspectives. Students might be matched with partners from the other course and work with those partners at each touch point. Each individual student would complete tasks in preparation for these merged-class meetings. Tasks might begin with identifying the methods used by the discipline represented (i.e., psychology or anthropology), then next prepare to discuss the definitions of personality used by the discipline represented, and then prepare to discuss the ways in which the respective disciplines apply knowledge of personality to real-world questions.

A third model includes students across multiple courses working on one community-based project. For example, a campus-wide first-year experience, introduction to the major, or capstone project might involve food insecurity in the community. After serving organizations that address food insecurity, students might examine food insecurity through the lens of their major and then work with individuals from other majors to develop an intervention that incorporates the knowledge and skills associated with each represented discipline.

A fourth model is to develop a single course with a problem-focused theme that includes guests who represent different disciplines. For example, as students learn principles of behavior change, they might hear from guests who use these principles to improve medication adherence, worker productivity, student learning, community partnerships, charitable donations, and pet behavior.

The fifth model is to develop a single course with faculty who represent two or more disciplines and students who represent two or more disciplines. The faculty co-teach the course and design assignments and activities that include knowledge and skills from the instructors’ disciplines. Our current IDE experiences represent this model.

Our IDE Examples

Observing and Analyzing Teams, is a cross-listed psychology and business course co-taught by a psychology professor and an organizational leadership professor that is open to students from a variety of majors. In this course students apply observational learning strategies to live interacting teams (a sport team, a professional theatre group, and a business team) to identify effective and ineffective team characteristics and connect their observations to what they learn about Bandura’s Social Learning Theory, field notes in ethnography, and research about best practices for managing teams. Thus, instead of participating in a team, students explore teamwork from the perspective of an observer and a scholar.

MRI Patient Experience is a course specifically designed for psychology and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) students. In this course, students learn about the prevalence of patient negative emotion in MRI and how negative emotion can impact image quality and result in cancelled or rescheduled scans. Psychology majors provide the knowledge they have about emotion and the skills they have for reading research articles. MRI students provide information about the environmental factors and procedures that contribute to patient distress. Students distinguish among types of negative emotion, identify nonverbal behaviors that reflect negative emotion, describe the roles and responsibilities of health psychologists and MRI technologists, critically evaluate MRI distress intervention studies, implement emotion regulation interventions in a simulated MRI setting, and provide and respond to constructive feedback.

IDE Challenges

IDE presents several unique challenges worth noting. The logistics surrounding high quality and cohesive IDE involving more than one faculty member requires extensive collaboration time to create content with other educators or community partners. It can become obvious to students if the content is disjointed as opposed to when there is one instructor with smoother transitions and integration of content. Joint assignment grading across instructors can be valuable in order to ensure that students perceive the course to be coherent and connected. This requires consistent coordination for timely grading. One more challenge is students’ perceptions of role ambiguity. Specifically, students may try to figure out who they think is ‘in charge’ or who they believe they should go to for assignment and grading questions. Establishing rapport across collaborators can be as important as establishing rapport with students in IDE contexts, in part for these reasons.

There can also be logistical and administrative challenges, such as how an IDE course counts toward teaching load. In other words, will the college or university pay two instructors full pay to teach one course together? Alternatively, are there any special grants or funding for this to occur in situations where the course is deemed extremely valuable in a co-teaching or IDE design? This varies across institutions. Lastly, when working with multiple educators or partners, it can often be a challenge to coordinate class meeting times that fit the instructors’ and students’ schedules.

IDE Rewards

Our experiences are that the rewards of IDE far exceed the challenges. Student engagement in these courses is high. Students value thinking about direct applications of psychology content, discussing different perspectives of the same issue, gaining knowledge from other disciplines, and developing self-efficacy for the application of knowledge and skills they can apply to their future careers. Students tell us these learning opportunities allow them to reflect, to develop better attention to detail, and to appreciate the value of diversity. Our IDE courses provide a unique shared learning experience for instructors and students, and we have found that offering a more holistic perspective of course content justifies working through the challenges involved.

Page Break

References

American Psychological Association. (2018a). Degrees in psychology [Interactive data tool]. https://www.apa.org/workforce/data-tools/degrees-psychology

American Psychological Association. (2018b). The skillful psychology student: Prepared for success in the 21^st century workplace [PDF file]. https://www.apa.org/careers/resources/guides/transferable-skills.pdf

American Psychological Association. (2019). The APA Introductory Psychology Initiative: Envisioning the future: Charting new directions for Introductory Psychology. https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/undergrad/introductory-psychology-initiative/index

Centre for the Advancement of Interprofessional Education. (2019). About us: What is CAIPE? https://www.caipe.org/about-us

Goldsmith, A. H., Hamilton, D., Hornsby, K., & Wells, D. (2018). Interdisciplinary approaches to teaching. Starting Point. https://serc.carleton.edu/48978.1921

Gurung, R. A. R., Hackathorn, J., Enns, C., Frantz, S., Cacioppo, J. T., Loop, T., & Freeman, J. E. (2016). Strengthening introductory psychology: A new model for teaching the introductory course. American Psychologist, 71(2), 112-124. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/a0040012

Rocking Your First Day of Class (and Beyond!)

Thu, 02 Jan 2020 15:52:37 GMT

Donald A. Saucier (Kansas State University)

The Promise of a New Day

I love the first day of class. As it approaches, I get excited. I get antsy. It is the beginning of a new academic experience with a new bunch of collaborators, and on that first day I get to introduce my course and my content to people who may come to love it as much as I do. The first day is not a “syllabus day”. While I do review the syllabus with my students, I do much more than read through the course policies, describe the student learning outcomes, and outline the schedule of topics. If that were all I did (and to be honest, some students expect and even want that), then I would have missed the opportunity to engage my students in the wonderful learning we will do together. My goal on the first day is to inspire my students to want to come back for the second day of class (and then the third day, and the fourth day. . .). On that first day, I try to show my class how engaging, valuable, and relevant the class will be for them and for me. I set the tone, norms, and expectations that will provide the foundation for our shared and engaged academic experience.

My Teaching Philosophy

My approach to the first day of class is grounded in my teaching philosophy that focuses on maximizing the intrinsic motivation that I have in my teaching and that my students have in their learning. When we are intrinsically motivated to engage in an activity, we do it because we gain inherent pleasure in the activity. That is, we do it because enjoy it. When we are extrinsically motivated to engage in an activity, we do it to gain an external reward. That is, we do it to get something. Research on these types of motivation and on self-determination theory shows that when we engage in activities due to intrinsic (rather than extrinsic) motivation, we engage in them more consistently and enjoy them more. When we engage in activities due to extrinsic motivation, it is possible that the extrinsic motivation may undermine the intrinsic motivation. Knowing this, I use the first day of class to highlight for my students why they may be intrinsically motivated to take the class. I have designed three components into my first day approach to maximize my students’ intrinsic motivation for the course. I inspire their choice to learn, nurture their voices, and use trickle-down engagement to inspire them to leave the first day of my class wanting to come back on the second day and beyond.

Inspiring the Choice to Learn

The first component of my first day engagement strategies is inspiring my students’ choice to learn. I believe that students must be intrinsically motivated to learn if they are to learn well. That is, they must make the choice to learn for themselves because they see the content as valuable, interesting, and personally relevant. On the first day of class, I ask my students why they enrolled in my class, and they typically respond with answers that fit into one of two categories. The first, and usually more frequent, category of responses is that they took the class for extrinsic reasons, such as to satisfy a requirement or because an advisor told them to. The second category of responses is that they took the class for intrinsic reasons, such as to learn about a topic they thought would be interesting. I use these responses to discuss the differences between extrinsic and intrinsic motivation, with an emphasis on the possibility that extrinsic motivations may undermine intrinsic motivations.

This conversation becomes more powerful as I help them make their choices to learn. I ask my students to stand up if they are able and to repeat after me. I make statements such as: “I don’t have to be in this course.” “I don’t have to come back.” “If I come back, then I am choosing to take this course.” “If I choose to take this course, I do so because I find it valuable for me.” “If I come back, it means that I love psychology!” These public affirmations, reminiscent of the force compliance paradigms used in cognitive dissonance research, make salient my students’ autonomy in their course decisions and the role their intrinsic motivation for the course has in their educational decisions.

My course semantics and policies also reflect this choice to learn. I tell my students that they have no points at the start of my course and also that my course has no “requirements.” Instead, they will have “opportunities” to earn and accumulate points throughout the semester. I do not tell them they have to do anything. Instead, I make recommendations regarding the choices I hope they make. I will recommend, for instance, that they come to class to engage in the material and that they read the relevant readings for an upcoming exam so that they will have the best opportunity to learn the material, and consequently earn points. If students ask me if they have to do anything, such as “Do I have to read Chapter 2?”, my answer is always something like, “No, but I recommend that you choose to do that if you would like to learn the material.” By emphasizing their choice to learn in their decision to take the course and engage in the content, the students become more inspired to do the work for themselves.

Nurturing Student Voices

The second component of my first day engagement strategies is starting to nurture my students’ voices. This is an important objective in my courses, and I provide opportunities for students to use their voices on the very first day of class. I explain to them that their voices are their most powerful social tool and, either through speaking or writing, their voices are the means through which they may influence their futures and their worlds. On the first day of my courses, my students use their voices in three ways. As stated above, my students use their voices to tell me their initial motivations for taking my course, and they also use their voices to affirm that they understand their motivation for staying in my course should be intrinsic. The third way that my students use their voices on the first day of my courses is by asking me questions. By asking questions, students are able to guide their own learning, and this is a skill I want to nurture in my students. They practice this skill by first asking me questions on that first day in writing. I offer my students the opportunity to ask me questions about anything, and their questions generally bridge a number of domains from questions about course content and policies, to questions about my professional background and education, to questions about my personal life and opinions. Importantly, I answer ALL of their questions. In large classes, I may collect their questions on the first day (and often have them submit questions in groups of two of three) and use the entire second day of class to answer every question they asked. By taking all of their questions seriously, and answering them all, I reinforce my students for using their voices and validate the specific ways in which they used them. After answering their questions, I offer my students the opportunity to ask additional or follow-up questions. This helps to create a community of learners in which we collaborate to create learning, and this norm that we set on the first day of the course continues during the semester. Through this conversation, we also build rapport, making the learning environment safer and more engaging.

Using Trickle-Down Engagement

The third component of my first day engagement strategies is that I intentionally and palpably employ my teaching philosophy of trickle-down engagement. We have the best jobs in the world. I cherish the opportunity to teach my classes. I love my content, and I love having the opportunity to share that content with my students. I found that as a student, I engaged best and learned best when my teachers enjoyed their content and enjoyed teaching it to me. Their engagement was contagious. It helped me to engage and it helped me to learn. I have found that telling my students how much I love my content and how much I love collaborating with them in learning it during our shared class time has made the class become a more engaged community of learners. I explicitly share my intrinsic motivation to teach the course with my students and discuss my “choice to teach” as a parallel to their choice to learn. I also show my students why the course matters to me and my optimism for what the experience may be. In overviewing my course, I discuss how important and interesting the content will be. I discuss how the assignments will be wonderful ways for students to apply their learning in creative and personally relevant ways. I discuss how excited I am to pursue the course objectives with them, and how honored I am that they have chosen to take the course with me. At the end of class on the first day, I tell my students how excited I am to have them come back on the second day.

Importantly, my engagement in my content and in teaching it is authentic. This is not something that I (or you) can fake. I truly believe that the classroom is an oasis that provides relief from any other professional or personal responsibilities, distractions, and anxieties. I enjoy my class time and the opportunity to spend that time with my students learning our content. When I tell them about my intrinsic motivation, and thank them for the opportunity to learn with them, I am completely sincere.

Sustaining Student Engagement

Once you have rocked the first day, you can then rock the second day! After greeting my students on the second day of class, I ask them why they are taking the course. They usually respond with a chorus of, “Because we chose to!” This use of their voices to reinforce their intrinsic motivation and autonomy affirms my mission to teach. It inspires my engagement in my teaching and excites me about sharing my passion for the course content. This in turn trickles down to inspire their engagement and facilitate their learning. My students and I do this again and again over the course of the semester as we engage each other in our course.

Engage!

The methods that I employ to engage my students and me in my course are simple. They can be adapted and employed by virtually any teacher in any course. But while simple, I believe they make a substantial difference in the motivations of the teacher and the students, and in the climate they enjoy as a community of learners. The first day is a unique opportunity to set the tone, norms, and expectations that our courses will be valuable and engaging experiences, and the days that follow are periodic opportunities to reinforce that. I invite you to choose to use these methods in inspiring your students’ choice to learn, nurturing your students’ voices, and using trickle-down engagement to engage your students and yourself to learn together.

Spreading “Neuroscience Cheer”: Development and Implementation of a Mobile Neuroscience Lab for Community Engagement

(Past member) — Mon, 02 Dec 2019 17:01:26 GMT

Dustyn J. Leff & Rebecca J. Gilbertson (University of Minnesota – Duluth)

Traditional approaches to teaching involve the instructor imparting knowledge to students (Edgerton, 2001). The students are expected to absorb the information and put it into practice at some later time. Though lectures are necessary in many learning situations, they do not promote a higher understanding of course material when used as the only teaching method (Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005). Edgerton (2001) states that understanding material involves the ability to explain ideas, support the ideas with evidence, find examples, and apply ideas in new ways.

Active learning requires student activity and engagement in the learning process (Bonwell & Eison, 1991). The outcome of hands-on activities has been shown to enhance the level of understanding reached and general cognitive development (Pascarella & Terenzini, 2005; Prince, 2004). With this in mind, we chose active learning activities to demonstrate brain related concepts to middle, secondary and higher education students (Marzullo & Gage, 2012; Shannon, Gage, Jankovic, Wilson, & Marzullo,

2013).

The goal of this project was to bring neuroscience activities to middle school classrooms using a “Mobile Neuroscience Lab”, as part of a community engagement component of a physiological psychology course. This outreach model eases the financial and logistical burden of the community school to facilitate a field trip to the university. Another goal was for the middle school and university students to have the opportunity to engage in hands-on neuroscience related activities.

Learning Outcomes and Strategic Goals

Outreach was performed by undergraduate and graduate students. Faculty members within the department also assisted with the outreach. This addresses the American Psychological Association’s five learning goals and outcomes for the undergraduate psychology majors, including: knowledge base, scientific inquiry and critical thinking, ethical and social responsibility in a diverse world, communication, and professional development (APA, 2013). Students had the opportunity to fulfill these five learning goals in various ways through the outreach experience. The APA also recommends, in their outline for quality undergraduate education in psychology, activities that engage students in academic work and group activities (Halpern, 2010).

This outreach is also beneficial for graduate students. Gardner and Barnes (2007) noted that graduate students have goals and outcomes that differ from undergraduate students. Their study included a survey of graduate students and assessed participation in professional and non-professional activities. They found that graduate students sought professional development opportunities that would help them gain experience for their careers. It was also reported that networking, and learning how to network, was important to the graduate students as well.

Finally, the project met university level strategic goals including: strengthening ties within the community through shared values of research and service, promotion of innovative and integrated curricular learning, preparation of students to be critical thinkers and reflective learners, advance research activities of faculty, students, and students in the community, and to be sustainable and easily repeatable over time.

Planning and Implementation

Multiple steps were needed prior to the implementation of a Mobile Neuroscience Lab which included: equipment purchase, community education partner identification, planning of outreach activities geared towards middle school students, and active learning activity training with university psychology students. Students who completed training received a long-sleeve t-shirt with the project logo and wore the t-shirt during the community engagement activity. Age appropriate assessment materials of attitudes toward science and perceived benefit of the activity was also included. Participation in the assessment component of the activity was voluntary. That is, the middle school students did not have to complete the survey if they did not wish to.

Assessment of Outreach Activity

The content of these outreach programs had an emphasis on anatomy, physiology, and laboratory exercises, with middle school age groups in mind. Initially, there was a mix of large and small group activities. Large group instruction typically included a brief overview of central nervous system structure and function. Following, students completed a paper/pencil brain cap activity and labeled the areas and function of the cortex, cerebellum, and spinal cord. A comparison of sheep brains to human brains followed by a sheep brain dissection small group activity (1 university student to 5 middle school students) was then performed. The current format of the neuroscience outreach activity involves small group instruction only.

Assessments for learning outcomes for middle school students had to be identified. The goal of this outreach program was to inspire young students to take an interest in neuroscience, so we decided that measuring students’ attitudes and beliefs towards science, and the impact of the outreach program on those attitudes, should be the focus. During the first year of assessment, 250 middle school students completed a 19-item satisfaction survey that assessed science attitudes and beliefs, and what they liked or disliked about the activity (BrainU, 2010). The pilot data from this first experience showed that middle school students liked the hands-on activities, but had less favorable attitudes towards large group verbal instruction. We also realized that singular surveys given after the experience did not allow us to compare attitudes before and after the outreach.

During the second year of the outreach, we gave assessments to 139 students before and after the outreach and a demographic questionnaire. Surveys were administered one week prior to the neuroscience activity and within two days after the neuroscience activity. This allowed us to determine whether attitudes and beliefs towards science changed following the outreach. We assessed science attitudes using the My Attitudes Toward Science (MATS) instrument (Hillman, Zeeman, Tilburg, & List, 2016). The measure looked at four dimensions: a) attitude towards the subject of science, b) desire to become a scientist, c) value of science to society, and d) perception of scientists. The data showed that students attitudes before outreach did not differ significantly from attitudes after

outreach. However, this was possibly due to students already having positive attitudes towards science, resulting in a ceiling effect.

Perceived Benefit of Outreach Activity

Regarding undergraduate and graduate feedback on the experience, we found that students saw it as a good learning experience for themselves and would help them professionally. Graduate students had the opportunity to lead entire classes, while undergraduate students led smaller (5-6 students) groups.

University students’ attitudes were assessed using a survey (adapted from Burdo, 2012) that asked: if the hands-on activity (or demonstration) a) improved my knowledge of the topic, b) was a positive experience for me, c) was a better learning experience for me than other types of teaching methodologies I’ve had in other courses, d) improved my interest in the topic, and e) I am likely to continue to seek other courses with hands-on activities. Findings indicate that the students’ view of the community engagement activity was generally positive.

Conclusion

To date, the Mobile Neuroscience Lab has reached over 1000 students (K-12). Nine undergraduate students, fifteen graduate students, and three faculty have participated in these activities, many who have returned over the years to continue volunteering their time. The outreach program was also featured in media outlets, such as local papers and news channels. As an additional benefit, we have been invited back year after year to our community partner, bringing the Mobile Neuroscience Lab to new groups of students.

However, one limitation of the current project is that a single outreach learning opportunity during the year may not be enough to sufficiently educate or leave long lasting impressions on students (see Dierking, Falk, Rennie, Anderson, & Ellenbogen, 2003). However, other literature suggests that high impact hands-on activities are remembered by students (VanderStoep, Fagerlin, & Feenstra, 2000).

Overall, science attitudes and beliefs can be positively impacted by neuroscience outreach activities, particularly in small instructional groups. The low cost of outreach makes it a sustainable opportunity to benefit all levels of students and educational institutions. In the future, we plan to continue assessing science attitudes and beliefs before and after the outreach activity to determine the effectiveness of the activity. We continue to make changes based on feedback from students who participate in our activities. In summary, neuroscience outreach activities provide university students, and the community, engagement that could positively affect science attitudes and beliefs of all students who participate in the activity.

Example neuroscience outreach materials are available from the authors upon request (gilbertr@d.umn.edu).

The authors wish to acknowledge Nathan Young for his contribution to the title of this essay.

References

American Psychological Association. (2013). APA guidelines for the undergraduate psychology major. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/about/learning-goals.pdf

Bonwell, C. C., & Eison, J. A. (1991). Active Learning: Creating Excitement in the Classroom. 1991 ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Reports. ERIC Clearinghouse on Higher Education. Retrieved from https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED336049

BrainU. (2010). Student Science Attitude Survey. Retrieved from http://brainu.org/files/bu_docs/forms/science.pdf

Burdo, J. R. (2012). Wikipedia neuroscience stub editing in an introductory undergraduate neuroscience course. Journal of Undergraduate Neuroscience Education, 11(1), A1.

Dierking, L. D., Falk, J. H., Rennie, L., Anderson, D., & Ellenbogen, K. (2003). Policy statement of the

“informal science education” ad hoc committee. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 40(2), 108111. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.10066

Edgerton, R. (2001). Education White Paper. Retrieved March 25, 2019 from

https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/#inbox/FMfcgxwBWStHrzDHHXJKJhvqbQtMHNNq?projector=1&m essagePartId=0.3

Gardner, S. K., & Barnes, B. J. (2007). Graduate student involvement: Socialization for the professional role. Journal of College Student Development, 48(4), 369-387. DOI:10.1353/csd.2007.0036

Halpern, D. F. (2010). Undergraduate education in psychology: A blueprint for the future of the discipline. Washington, DC, US: American Psychological Association. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/12063-000

Hillman, S. J., Zeeman, S. I., Tilburg, C. E., & List, H. E. (2016). My Attitudes Toward Science (MATS): The development of a multidimensional instrument measuring students’ science attitudes.

Learning Environments Research, 19(2), 203-219. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10984-016-9205-x

Marzullo, T. C., & Gage, G. J. (2012). The SpikerBox: a low cost, open-source bioamplifier for increasing public participation in neuroscience inquiry. PLoS One, 7(3), e30837.

https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0030837

Pascar ella, E. T., & Terenzini, P. T. (2005). How College Affects Students: A Third Decade of Research. Volume 2. Indianapolis, IN: Jossey-Bass, An Imprint of Wiley.

Prince, M. (2004). Does active learning work? A review of the research. Journal of Engineering Education, 93(3), 223-231. https://doi.org/10.1002/j.2168-9830.2004.tb00809.x

Shannon, K. M., Gage, G. J., Jankovic, A., Wilson, W. J., & Marzullo, T. C. (2014). Portable conduction velocity experiments using earthworms for the college and high school neuroscience teaching laboratory. Advances in Physiology Education, 38(1), 62-70. https://doi.org/10.1152/advan.00088.2013 VanderStoep, S. W., Fagerlin, A., & Feenstra, J. S. (2000). What do students remember from introductory psychology?. Teaching of Psychology, 27(2), 89-92. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15328023TOP2702_02

Using Podcasts to Teach Reflection, Application, and Critical Thinking

(Past member) — Fri, 01 Nov 2019 21:17:56 GMT

Dietlinde Heilmayr (Moravian College)

Story-based podcasts provide students with the opportunity to peer into experiences, events, or lives that they may otherwise miss, ignore, or skim past. Storytelling is engrained across cultures and has been used for centuries to teach shared customs, values, and skills (Coulter, Michael, & Poynor, 2007; Zabel, 1991). Despite their being a natural and culturally engrained teaching tool, stories are not regularly incorporated into higher education courses. Story-based podcasts provide an excellent medium to reintegrate this type of teaching and learning into a college classroom. With the goal of using narrative to teach students psychological concepts, I developed an assignment that guides students through reflection, application, and critical thinking using a podcast as a framework.

This assignment was developed for a Social Psychology course using the segment “All the Caffeine in the World Doesn’t Make You Woke” from Episode 648 of the podcast series This American Life. This segment tells the story of two Black men who were unjustly arrested at a Philadelphia Starbucks, and Starbucks’ response that entailed a company-wide closure for the purpose of providing employees with racial bias training. Though my class focused on issues of racism, implicit bias, and the science of implicit bias trainings, this assignment can be adapted to fit a variety of topics and courses by selecting a different episode or podcast; suggestions for effective podcasts are discussed at the end of this essay, with specific podcast recommendations provided in the suggested resources section.

The goals of this semester-long assignment were threefold: 1) To teach students to apply social psychological constructs to real-world events; 2) To engage students in critical thinking by having them first develop an opinion on a topic as a layperson, and then revisit and revise their opinion using a social scientific lens; and 3) To provide students the opportunity to reflect on what they learned over the course of a semester and to explicitly acknowledge shifts in thinking through writing and discussion.

To achieve these goals, I developed a three-part semester-long assignment. First, after listening to the podcast segment, students wrote a brief “gut reaction” reflection to the podcast. The goal of this component was for the students to put their thoughts and reactions into writing—what did they think of the arrest? Of Starbucks’ response? Of racial bias training? We then discussed these reflections in class. Discussing the initial reflection offers the opportunity for students to hear others’ points of views and to have a constructive conversation about varied and perhaps conflicting viewpoints, providing fodder for idea development throughout the rest of the semester. In our initial discussion, it was important for me to let students feel heard while being careful not to validate and thus entrench all of their opinions, making them resistant to further developing their thoughts. That is, the goal of the initial discussion component of the project should be to open students’ minds to the science of social psychology to which they will be exposed over the course of the semester.

The second part of the assignment asks students to keep notes on concepts learned through readings and lecture that are relevant to the incident documented in the podcast. For example, many students took notes—ideally in a separate notebook or digital document—about stereotyping, victim-blaming, the Implicit Association Test, and the contact hypothesis. More specifically, students identified and defined relevant concepts, and jotted down ideas about how the concepts relate to the events described in the podcast segment. Students were also asked to find, read, and take notes about media reports of the Starbucks incident, thus engaging with the topic from multiple perspectives using a variety of media outlets. For the second part of the assignment, it was critical to remind students they should be keeping a log of their notes, in particular on days that we discussed many relevant concepts. This ensures students are analyzing, applying, and organizing concepts as the semester unfolded instead of scrambling to apply concepts at the end of the semester when the notes are turned in. The former provides students with the time necessary to reflect and develop ideas, while the latter has the potential to lead to forced and superficial reflections.

The final assignment component was a research paper that students wrote after listening to the podcast segment a second time. In this paper, students were asked to again explore what they thought of the arrest and Starbucks’ racial bias training. This time, however, students were to ground their thoughts in psychological science, using theories and principles of social psychology to support their reflections. I also asked students to engage with the scientific literature relevant to the podcast segment with the aim of encouraging deeper thinking and analysis than in the first reflection. Students were asked to find and synthesize four scholarly sources in their final papers: they briefly summarized the articles and applied the knowledge they gained from the articles to their reflection. For example, some students found evidence that racial bias training has the potential to backfire (Duguid & Thomas-Hunt, 2015), and thus argued that Starbucks’ training might have done more harm than good. In their final paper, students also reflected on if and how their opinions of the incident and Starbucks’ response shifted since the first reflection assignment, why they shifted, and what a more effective response may have been.

The final paper assignment and semester notes were turned in prior to the final exam period, which was used as a discussion period to synthesize this semester-long assignment. In discussion, I asked students to synthesize the literature that they found, allowing them to learn from each other and continue to develop their thoughts. The goal of the discussion was to provide the space and time for students to come together and discuss what they learned, as well as acknowledge any mental shifts that took place. I wanted students to leave the class with the critical thinking skills and open-mindedness necessary to know that opinions can and should change in response to high-quality, empirical evidence.

In sum, there were three main assignments—the initial reflection, the catalog of notes taken throughout the semester, and the final research paper, with class discussions bookending the assignments. Students in the course reported enjoying the assignment and viewed it as a valuable learning experience. Moreover, many students in the course had never listened to a podcast before and appreciated being introduced to the medium. From my perspective, students seemed to not only develop a better understanding of why the events described in the podcast transpired (i.e., the arrest), but they also illustrated their ability to apply social psychological research to critically evaluate the training that Starbucks implemented. Many reported shifts in their thinking that I believe were due to the long-term and focused nature of the assignment.

Though I developed this assignment for a face-to-face course, it could be easily adapted for an online or hybrid course by shifting the discussions to an online learning platform. For example, students could be asked to post a few thoughts and questions, and also respond to the reactions of their peers. The instructor could then provide comments and probing questions on the nascent discussion, and then have students add additional responses. Over three-to-four rounds of back-and-fourth with other students and the instructor, the students would pushed to think deeply and critically about the issues at hand, emulating the experience of students in a face-to-face course.

This assignment could also be adapted for different courses or contexts by selecting a different podcast series or a different episode from This American Life. That is, the instructor can change the podcast or podcast segment without changing the assignment itself. That said, given the large amount of time and energy that students will devote to this assignment throughout the course, selecting an appropriate podcast is critical. What I believe made “All the Caffeine in the World Doesn’t Make You Woke” successful for this assignment is first due to the scope of the segment. The episode segment gave enough information about the events for students to become interested, but it did not go into too much detail about the science of implicit bias or implicit bias training. That is, students still had the space to reflect over the course of the semester, to find journal articles to discuss in their final papers, and to come to their own conclusions. Relatedly, this segment was a good length for students—approximately 20 minutes. Episodes or segments that are too long may lose students’ interest, may overwhelm students with information, or may make students feel as if there is nothing to add to the discussion. Finally, this segment resonated with my students because our College is about an hour north of Philadelphia, where the events transpired. Finding a story that is geographically nearby may not be possible for instructors at all institutions, but podcasts that are recent or relatable in some regard is important for keeping students engaged throughout the semester.

I chose to grade the first assignment leniently and with minimal feedback, as the main purpose of the first assignment was (1) to set a tone for the course that made students comfortable expressing ideas, and (2) to act as a check that students listened to and reflected upon the podcast. This assignment was worth 5% of students’ final grades and was graded for clarity and thoughtfulness. The semester notes and final paper were turned in and graded in tandem. Given that the final papers were meant to be an application of what was learned over the course of the semester, these were weighted more heavily in the final grade (10%) and received thorough, critical, and constructive feedback. The completion of thoughtful semester notes was bundled into the rubric for the final paper. For the final paper, students could earn up to three points each for semester notes; writing style and organization; content (weighted twice); critical thinking (weighted twice); and reflection on opinion change. Students received thorough feedback on final papers, which I asked them to read and engage with prior to our final course discussion.

In sum, this three-part semester-long assignment provides students the opportunity to engage deeply with a real-world topic through the lens of social psychology. The assignment is flexible, in that it can be adapted for different types of courses (e.g., hybrid or fully-online), and also for different topics (e.g., by using a different podcast). Students in my course reported enjoying the assignment, and I found the assignment to help them develop critical thinking and application skills that can be difficult to refine with more narrowly focused or shorter term assignments.

References

Coulter, C., Michael, C., & Poynor, L. (2007). Storytelling as pedagogy: An unexpected outcome

of narrative inquiry. Curriculum Inquiry, 37(2), 103-122.

Duguid, M. M., & Thomas-Hunt, M. C. (2015). Condoning stereotyping? How awareness of

stereotyping prevalence impacts expression of stereotypes. Journal of Applied Psychology, 100(2), 343-359.

Zabel, M. K. (1991). Storytelling, myths, and folk tales: Strategies for multicultural

inclusion. Preventing School Failure: Alternative Education for Children and Youth, 36(1), 32-34.

Suggested resources

This American Life Education Resources. Retrieved from https://www.thisamericanlife.org/education.

This StoryCorps Education Resources. Retrieved from https://storycorps.org/discover/education/.

Frantz, S. (2018, Sep 2). Recommended psychology-related podcasts [blog post]. Retrieved from

https://community.macmillan.com/community/the-psychology-community/blog/2018/09/02/recommended-psychology-related-podcasts.

Improving Student Perceptions of Group Work

(Past member) — Thu, 03 Oct 2019 12:45:30 GMT

Krisztina V. Jakobsen (James Madison University)

I have been teaching using team-based learning (TBL; Michaelsen, Knight, & Fink, 2004) for almost a decade. TBL is a flipped classroom method in which student learn course content outside of class and work in permanent teams during class to complete application exercises. Although the literature is somewhat mixed, TBL is at least as effective as other teaching strategies with respect to content acquisition (e.g., Carmichael, 2009; Chung, Rhee, Baik, & A, 2009; Jakobsen, McIlreavy, & Marrs, 2014). I personally use it because it works for my teaching style, course objectives, and students (Jakobsen, 2018). In my view, TBL provides students with opportunities to master core content consistently, while potentially developing transferable stills for other endeavors (Hart, 2006; Robles, 2012). For example, TBL provides opportunities for students to critically analyze information to solve problems, to use effective oral communication, and to collaborate with others.

A central component of TBL requires students to work in permanent teams throughout the semester. When students realize that they will be working in groups for the whole semester, I can see the hesitation in their faces, as they may not have had positive experiences with group work in the past. Some students have told me that they feel that group work holds them back, that they are taking on more work because of slackers, and that the groups tend to devolve into irrelevant or unproductive discussions. When I explain that we will be working in teams during each class, many of the students are dubious about the team-based format and would prefer lectures and individual work instead.

Although possibly the most vocal, students who eschew learning in teams are in the minority. Previous studies find that students generally have positive perceptions of group work (e.g., Walker, 2001), particularly in structured, well-defined group work experiences, as is the case in TBL (e.g., Butt, 2018; Vasan, DeFouw, & Compton, 2009; Willis et al., 2002). However, there are conditions under which students report concerns about group work. For example, when students do not feel a sense of being connected to members of their group (Jassawalla, Sashittal, & Malshe, 2009), they report concerns of social loafing (Latané, Williams, & Harkins, 1979). It is in precisely these two areas—being members of a community and decreasing social loafing—that TBL may excel.

First, TBL holds students individually accountable for learning the course content outside of class through an individual quiz at the beginning of the unit. Following the individual quiz, students complete the same quiz again in their teams. After a short clarification lecture, teams complete application exercises in which they have to make a specific choice that they share simultaneously with other teams before having a full-class discussion. In order to contribute to the team quiz, application exercises, and class discussion, students must be prepared for class and are held accountable for being prepared. Midterm and end of semester team evaluations are also a critical component of the TBL structure. While the midterm team evaluations provide students with feedback on what they are doing well and how they can improve their contributions to the team, the end of semester evaluations determine how many of the team points each individual student will earn toward their final grade.

Because TBL has some features that may alleviate concerns with previous group issues associated with feeling connected and social loafing, we were particularly interested in students’ perceptions of group work after participating in a TBL course. I asked students (N=68) in a developmental psychology class about their perceptions of group work at the beginning of the semester and after participating in a TBL class. At the end of the semester, I also asked students how their experience working in TBL groups compared to working in groups in other classes.

Some of the perceptions students had of working in groups did not change over the course of the semester. These tended to skew toward the positives of group work and found that students, in general, have positive views of working in groups, as supported by the literature. For example, students believed that they could learn from working in groups and that they enjoy working in groups. They also believed that working in groups prepares them for their future careers and develops their communication skills along with the ability to work with others, even when they have different perspectives.

What did change over the course of the semester were student perceptions of being part of a learning community and perceived social loafing. Students’ perceptions of being part of a learning community increased and their perceptions of social loafing decreased from the beginning of the semester to the end. Permanent teams may increase feelings of being connected to members of a group which decreases social loafing (Jassawalla et al., 2009; Springer et al., 1999). These complementary processes may be key features that promote positive student perceptions of working in teams.

Although TBL has yet to demonstrate consistent benefits for content mastery beyond those of competing pedagogies (e.g., Jakobsen et al., 2014), TBL may provide the kind of structure that provides an opportunity for students to master other important abilities that are highly desired by employers (Hart, 2006; Robles, 2012). Thus, TBL may provide added value above and beyond the mastering key content. This is one of the reasons that keeps me teaching in this style. Taking the leap to restructure a class to TBL may be daunting, but the principles of providing a good team experience for students can be done without all features of its specific structure. Ensuring individual accountability prior to group work, using permanent teams, and working during class (Springer, Stanne, & Donovan, 1999), can be achieved in almost any class.

As with all pedagogical strategies, there is much to be done to understand how working with others benefits learning and influences perceptions. While the TBL structure provides opportunities for students to work on numerous other transferable skills, including oral communication, flexibility, and applying knowledge and skills in real-world settings (Hart, 2006; Robles, 2012), little research has examined how TBL may contributes to directly developing these skills. Our next steps are to explore the role of individual differences in group work. As group work becomes more prominent in the college classroom, not everyone may benefit in the same way. For example, individuals with diverse cultural backgrounds, personality traits, and genders may have very different experiences working in groups (Myers et al., 2009; Šerić & Garbin Praničević, 2018), which teachers who use group work should, at minimum, be aware.

There are a number of pedagogical systems and strategies that have been demonstrated to positively influence learning course content. The strategies that are most effective are those that fit the context, goals, student level and instructor while demonstrably making progress towards the learning goals. Beyond course content, there may be skills and perspectives that teachers hope to integrate into their classes. If one of your goals is for students to become more proficient in employable skills like working in teams, it is laudable to consider those issues as you select your teaching strategies. For me, TBL is a very good fit to meet those additional goals.

References

Butt, A. (2018). Quantification of influences on student perceptions of group work. Journal of University Teaching & Learning Practice, 15(5),

Carmichael, J. (2009). Team-based learning enhances performance in introductory biology. Journal of College Science Teaching, 38(4), 54.

Chung, E. K., Rhee, J. A., & Baik, Y. H. (2009). The effect of team-based learning in medical ethics education. Medical Teacher, 31(11), 1013-1017. doi: 10.3109/01421590802590553

Hart, P.D. (2006). How should colleges prepare students to succeed in today's global economy? Washington, D.C.: Peter D. Hart Research Associates.

Jakobsen, K. V. (2018). Team-based learning: A tool for your pedagogical toolbox. In W. Altman, L. Stein, & J. E. Westfall (Eds.), Essays from E-xcellence in Teaching (Vol. 17, pp. 1-6). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology Web site: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/eit2017/index.php

Jakobsen, K. V., McIlreavy, M., & Marrs, S. (2014). Team-based learning: The importance of attendance. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 13(1), 25-31. https://doi.org/10.2304/plat.2014.13.1.25

Jassawalla, A., Sashittal, H., & Sashittal, A. (2009). Students' perceptions of social loafing: Its antecedents and consequences in undergraduate business classroom teams. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 8(1), 42-54. https://doi.org/10.5465/amle.2009.37012178

Latané, B., Williams, K., & Harkins, S. (1979). Many hands make light the work: The causes and consequences of social loafing. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37(6), 822-832. doi: 10.1037/0022-3514.37.6.822

Michaelsen, L.K., Knight, A.B., & Fink, L.D. (2004). Team-based learning: A transformative use of small groups in college thinking. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing LLC.

Myers, S. A., Bogdan, L. M., Eidsness, M. A., Johnson, A. N., Schoo, M. E., Smith, N. A., … Zackery, B. A. (2009). Taking a trait approach to understanding college students’ perceptions of group work. College Student Journal, 43(3), 822–831.

Robles, M. M. (2012). Executive perceptions of the top 10 soft skills needed in today’s workplace. Business Communication Quarterly, 75(4), 453-465. https://doi.org/10.1177/1080569912460400

Šerić, M., & Garbin Praničević, D. (2018). Managing group work in the classroom: An international study on perceived benefits and risks based on students’ cultural background and gender. Journal of Contemporary Management Issues, 23(1), 139-156. https://doi.org/10.30924/mjcmi/2018.23.1.139

Springer, S., & Collins, L. (2008). Interacting inside and outside of the language classroom. Language Teaching Research, 12(1), 39-60. https://doi.org/10.1177/1362168807084493

Vasan, N. S., DeFouw, D. O., & Compton, S. (2009). A survey of student perceptions of team-based learning in anatomy curriculum: Favorable views unrelated to grades. Anatomical Sciences Education, 2, 150-155. doi: 10.1002/ase.91

Walker, A. (2001). British psychology students' perceptions of group-work and peer assessment. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 1(1), 28-36. doi: 10.2304/plat.2001.1.1.28

Willis, S. C., Jones, A., Bundy, C., Burdett, K., Whitehouse, C. R., & O'Neill, P. A. (2002). Small-group work and assessment in a PBL curriculum: a qualitative and quantitative evaluation of student perceptions of the process of working in small groups and its assessment. Medical Teacher, 24(5), 495-501. https://doi.org/10.1080/0142159021000012531

Service Learning: A High-Impact Educational Practice for Students and the Community

(Past member) — Wed, 04 Sep 2019 00:04:20 GMT

Lisa H. Rosen (Texas Woman’s University)

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has”.

-Margaret Mead

Margaret Mead’s powerful words suggest that students can work together to create change in their communities. I include this quotation in the syllabi of my service learning courses, and ask students to reflect on this sentiment throughout the semester. As an instructor, I have been continuously impressed by the positive change brought about through service learning for both my students and our community. In this essay, I set out to define service learning and provide examples of how service learning can be incorporated into a variety of psychology courses. Although there are many benefits of service learning that I note in this essay, there are also possible pitfalls for which I offer recommendations to overcome.

At the simplest level, service learning enables students to learn about course content while engaging in meaningful community service. Service learning can be considered a field-based form of experiential learning and is a mutually beneficial process; students provide needed service to the community and completing the service activities enhances student’s educational experiences (Furco, 1996). The advantages of service learning for both students and the community are reflected in this often cited quote: “Service, combined with learning, adds value to each and transforms both” (Honnet & Poulsen, 1989, p. 1). The potential for students and the community to equally benefit is what differentials service learning from typical volunteerism and other forms of experiential education (Furco, 1996). Service learning is unique from other forms of community service because it is directly connected to course content and learning objectives and furthers progress toward academic goals (Bringle, Hatcher, & Jones, 2010).

Reflection is one of the key features of the service learning experience, and successful service learning assignments provide students ample opportunities for reflection throughout the process. In fact, service learning has been said to occur through “a cycle of action and reflection” (Barry, 2017, p. 127). Reflection is what brings about learning from the service experience (Eyler, Giles, Schmeide, 1999).

Service learning involves collaboration between students, faculty, and key community partners (Felten & Clayton, 2011). Working in the community provides students the opportunity to see the application of course material to a real-world setting (Baca, 2012). Service learning is also considered a high-impact educational practice as evidence consistently suggests that students benefit from its use (Kuh, 2008).

The nature of the service learning and how instructors guide reflection can take many forms. Service learning has been described as a flexible pedagogy (Savanick, 2018). As such, service learning is a pedagogical technique that can be applied to almost any psychology course. To demonstrate the flexibility of this technique, I provide two very different examples of how I use service learning: one in a large undergraduate Psychology of Women course and the second in a small graduate Developmental Psychology course.

In my larger Psychology of Women course, I divide my class into smaller groups and each carries out its own project. At the start of the semester, I ask students to complete a survey assessing academic interests, hobbies, and availability. Based on these surveys, I divide the class into smaller working groups of four to six students. Students are then tasked with designing a service project that is directly connected to the themes of the course. I provide students a list of approved community partners, but also offer them the ability to select other agencies pending instructor approval. Students develop a proposal for a project that aligns with course objectives and share their proposal with the class. As part of the proposal, students describe the community need they wish to address, explain why the community need exists, and discuss how they see their service project benefiting individuals and the community. Students are also asked to articulate how the service learning project aligns with course material. Prior to conducting the service project, students engage in pre-reflection, writing about their perceptions and beliefs about the population they will be serving. Once the proposal is finalized, students implement the project and reflect on their experiences through both a presentation and paper assignment.

As students are encouraged to use their creativity and draw on their shared interests, I have seen a wide array of projects. Several groups have worked with a local organization that provides an emergency shelter for women who have experienced relationship violence. Students have been able to draw on their interests and expertise to work with women and children at the shelter. For instance, one group with a shared interest in music, made musical instruments with children at the shelter and did a sing-a-long. Another group had an interest in cooking and conducted a demonstration on preparing healthy food on a budget. Similarly, students have worked extensively with our campus afterschool program. Projects here have also been diverse and driven by student interest. As an example, several chemistry majors in my course conducted science demonstrations and taught about female scientists with the hopes of encouraging girls to pursue interests in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics). Beyond targeting the children, another group discussed balancing multiple roles with our university students whose children were enrolled in the afterschool program and tried to offer practical suggestions based on the literature on family-work balance.

I take a slightly different approach when integrating service learning in my smaller graduate developmental psychology course. In this case, we complete the project together as a class and organize a series of activities for a nursing home. Again, I allow student interest to guide the project. As we study the period of late adulthood, students apply the material to designing our class project. For example, as we discuss physical development, students come to see that it might be challenging for some residents of the nursing home to complete a finely detailed coloring page using color pencils. After we finish the project as a group, we discuss the experience in class and students write a paper about their experiences.

Service learning is associated with many benefits for students (Eyler, Giles, Stenson, & Gray, 2001). Consistently, service learning has proved a way to engage students at higher levels of Bloom’s taxonomy and is associated with deep learning of the course material (Kronick, Cunningham, & Gourley, 2011). Further, service learning promotes the development of communication and interpersonal skills such as team work and leadership (Eyler et al., 1999). Moreover, service learning promotes career exploration and students can include this experience on their resumes. Maybe more importantly, service learning promotes a sense of social responsibility; students demonstrate greater understanding of socially complex issues and are more likely to serve their community in the future following service learning (Felten & Clayton, 2011). As an instructor, I have seen the positive impact of service learning on my students and have included a few student quotes, which I believe demonstrate the benefits of this pedagogical approach.

“After completion of my service project, I now have a more comprehensive understanding of several academic concepts addressed in this course… my service learning project made the course material relevant”.

“My service project has benefitted many facets of my life including personally, academically, and occupationally”.

“I encountered situations that were unfamiliar, and I was challenged to see life from a different perspective. I do believe this type of project should be required in all colleges”.

Although service learning is associated with many positive outcomes, there are a number of well-documented implementation challenges (Kronick et al., 2011). As learning takes place in a real world setting, students are often faced with uncertainty because there are factors that affect their project, which are beyond their control. For many service projects, students do not know the exact number of attendees to expect given the complexity of working with community organizations. One year, a group of students planned to do a painting project with children at the emergency shelter but only adults attended. I find it helpful to address this uncertainty at the start of the semester and discuss some of the potential reasons for this complexity. Another challenge is that organizations may be hesitant to partner with students (Kronick et al., 2011). A strategy that I have found to be effective is to reach out to organizations in our community and create a list of community partners. Service learning does have its challenges and takes extra work on the part of the faculty. However, I encourage you to try service learning in your own courses as I have witnessed groups of students change our community for the better, semester after semester.

References

Baca, I. (2012). Service-Learning and Writing: Paving the Way for Literacy(ies) through Community Engagement. Leiden, the Netherlands, Brill.

Barry, S. M. (2017). Methods of reflective practice in a service-learning dance pedagogy course. Journal of Dance Education, 17, 124-130.

Bringle, R. G., Hatcher, J.A., & Jones, S. G. (2010). International service learning: Conceptual frameworks and Research. Stirling, VA: Stylus.

Eyler, J., Giles, D. E., Stenson, C. M., & Gray, C. J. (2001). At A glance: What we know about the effects of service-learning on college students, faculty, institutions and communities, 1993- 2000: Third Edition" (2001). Higher Education. Retrieved from: https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/slcehighered/139.

Eyler, J., Giles, D., & Schmiede, A. (1996). A Practitioner’s Guide to Reflection in Service- Learning. Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University.

Felten, P., & Clayton, P. H. (2011) Service‐learning. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 128, 75–84.

Furco, A. (1996). Service-learning: a balanced approach to experiential education In Taylor, B.and Corporation for National Service (Eds.), Expanding Boundaries: Serving and Learning (pp. 2-6). Washington, DC: Corporation for National Service.

Honnet, E.P., & Poulsen, S. J (I 989). Principles of Good Practice for Combining Service and

Learning. Wingspread Special Report. Retrived from: https://www.coastal.edu/media/academics/servicelearning/documents/Principles%20of%20Good%20Practice%20for%20Combining%20Service%20and%20Learning.pdf.

Kronick, R., Cunningham, R., & Gourley, M. (2011). Experiencing Service Learning. Knoxville, TN: University of Tennessee Press.

Kuh, G. D. (2008). High-Impact Educational Practices: What They Are, Who Has Access to Them, and Why They Matter. Retrieved from: https://www.aacu.org/leap/hips.

Savanick, S. (2018). Service Learning. Retrieved from:https://serc.carleton.edu/sp/library/service/index.html.

The Craft of Infusing Critical Thinking Skills

(Past member) — Thu, 01 Aug 2019 18:30:09 GMT

Laura C. Edwards (Taylor University)

Much of thinking, unattended, can be biased, naïve, inattentive, and prejudiced. Alternatively, thinking can be reasoned, reflective, intellectual, and purposeful. Scholars refer to the latter type of thinking as critical thinking. The importance and challenge of fostering critical thinking in higher education are themes that have commanded worldwide attention. However, we are not alone in valuing critical thinking. Employers and governmental agencies also regard critical thinking as a central pillar and one of the most desired outcomes of higher education.

If you asked me if I teach for critical thinking, I would answer, “of course I do.” Or, as a professor answered, tongue-in-cheek, when asked the same question, “what do you think I teach? Uncritical thinking?” Probing further, if you were to inquire, “How do you do actually foster CT?” My answer would have been something similar to the following:

I pose questions that drive students’ thought underneath the surface of things that forces them to deal with complexity.
From time to time, I play the devil’s advocate on controversial issues in an attempt to prompt my students to think deeper and ask essential questions.
When conducive to the task at hand, I attempt to present multiple perspectives – which is not hard in the field of psychology.
I have always been attentive to stereotypical thinking and aware of underlying assumptions and make them salient to my students.

Your turn. If I were to ask how you teach CT, how would you answer?

Certainly, how I approached the teaching of CT was not “incorrect,” and I believe my students had the opportunity to think critically during my class time. In addition, I unquestionably modeled an openness to learn and consideration of others’ perspectives, but, according to empirical evidence, my method was not the most efficacious. As I probed, it came as a surprise to me that research findings indicated the majority of professors are not teaching CT skills effectively, and that most college students’ exhibit inadequate CT achievement (Arum & Roksa, 2011; Tiruneh, Verburgh, & Ellen, 2014).

While most professors have honed their personal thinking skills through the rigorous requirements of advanced studies, the majority do not have the pedagogical background to integrate critical thinking skills with class content. Some may lack knowledge in balancing the teaching of CT skills with course content, and others may struggle with the amount of time required to plan appropriately (Tsui, 2008).

I was curious about what professors, whose students efficiently hone their higher order thinking, were doing. Using a mixed methods explanatory sequential design, my study identified teaching strategies employed by faculty members to infuse preselected thinking skills into course content and the positive effects on students’ higher order thinking abilities. The research involved quantitative data from students’ pretest and posttest CT skill abilities evaluations and in-depth interviews with faculty members from seven distinct departments who were trained in the infusion method of teaching CT and whose students excelled in their CT gains.

The findings provide a “Road Map” for those looking to employ CT. The infusion method embeds CT skills into the framework of class content in an explicit manner (Ennis, 1987) as to permeate all aspects of the course content. Educators may optimize their effectiveness in infusing CT skills by adopting or adapting some of the validated strategies that emerged from the interviews. These strategies are not only supported by the extant CT literature, but also contributed to substantial gains in students’ CT skills (Edwards, 2017; Snyder, Edwards, & Sanders, in press). The strategies for the infusion of thinking skills include explicit teaching and intentional implementation, systematic practice, class discussions, teaching for transfer, and fostering reflection.

The Strategies

Be Explicit

Educators may benefit from recognizing that a simple, yet critical initial step in teaching students to think critically is identifying which CT skills they are already implicitly teaching (I chose two or three) and, subsequently, making them explicit. Explicit means not only mentioning the skill (e.g., asking good questions), but providing students with the “how-to”, such as employing de Bono’s (1999) thinking hats. In addition, it means helping students become cognizant of when the skills should be employed (I provide students with handouts including definitions, applications and “how-tos” and refer back to the handout throughout the semester as needed. According to the faculty members interviewed, making the skills explicit neither required an inordinate amount of time nor affected course content. Teaching explicitly is congruent with (Elder & Paul, 2010; Halpern, 1999) findings indicating that students become more proficient in CT.

Be Intentional in the Implementation

A critical step in the infusion of specific CT skills involved being deliberate in the process of embedding CT skills into lectures, assignments, assessments, and class discussions. The following steps emerged from the interviews:

1) Designate a few hours during the summer to select a few familiar CT skills which fit well within class content.

2) Prepare a packet with selected CT skills, provide definitions, and outline the steps required to achieve them and/or include them in the learning management system.

3) Deliberately embed the selected skills in the syllabus, power point presentations, assignments, and class discussions. When professors followed these steps, they ensured the infusion method lasted throughout the semester. Educators may be encouraged as they realize that, with a few hours of preparation, they can substantially increase their effectiveness in imparting the CT skills.

Systematic and repeated practice

All seven professors purported that systematic and repeated practice is essential for mastering the CT skills. Some practiced the skills with problem-solving situations; others embedded the skills in the reading assignments. One professor, whose “diagramming” was one of his selected skills, indicated asking the students to draw a diagram of the lecture at the end of each class, while another involved his students in practical research. According to Beyer (1985), upon teaching the thinking skills, deliberate and immediate application must follow. Philosophy professor Mulnix (2010) concurred, “There is no surrogate for repetitive practice” (p. 468) in teaching CT skills.

Classroom Discussions

Discussions provided opportunities for students to think critically about curriculum content. Class debates, using concept maps and decision trees, in small groups, and think-pair-share were dominant strategies. This preferred approach is congruent with Abrami et al.’s (2015) meta-analysis, which revealed that discussion seems to be especially effective in teaching higher-order thinking whether professors utilized whole class or small groups.

Teaching for Transfer

Higher education students tend not to transfer CT skills learned in the classroom to other areas outside the classroom. Students generally will do so only if instructors provide opportunities for them to see how a newly acquired skill applies to other situations and experiences, leading to greater CT outcomes (Abrami et al., 2015). Inviting guest speakers from distinct academic fields, who explicitly relate the CT skills to their own areas, is one suggestion provided, while intentional transfer to everyday activities, such as sports or business situations, also proved effective (Edwards, 2017).

Reflective Assignments

` Reflective assignments and exemplars, including journaling and reflective essays, helped students with metacognitive processes. “Reflective thinking and writing afforded students the opportunity to expand their personal grasp of the thinking skills and promoted intellectual growth, leading to the enhancement of students’ CT abilities” (Edwards, 2017, p.57).

Implications

Educators may benefit from recognizing that a simple, yet critical, initial step in teaching students to think critically is to identify which CT skills they already implicitly teach and, subsequently, make them explicit. According to the faculty members interviewed, making the skills explicit neither required an inordinate amount of time nor affected class content. The findings and strategies presented here are, on the whole, congruent with what higher educators already know about teaching and learning. For the past three years, I have been intentional about consistently employing the strategies above in the courses I teach. These rather simple strategies provide a pathway to the complex and multifaceted process of imparting higher order thinking. May we encourage and learn from one another as we pursue valid teaching methods that promote student growth in critical thinking.

References

Abrami, P. C., Bernard, R. M., Borokhovski, E., Waddington, D. I., Wade, A., & Persons, T.

(2015). Strategies for teaching students to think critically: A meta-analysis. Review of

Educational Research. 85(2), 275-291. doi: 10.3102/003465431455106

Arum, R., & Roksa, J. (2011). Academically adrift: Limited learning on college campuses. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.

De Bono, E. (1999). Six thinking hats. Boston: Back Bay Books.

Dewey, J. (1910). How we think. Boston, MA: D.C. Heath & Co.

Edwards, L. C., Snyder, S. J., & Sanders, A. L. (2016). Faculty development for fostering students’ critical thinking. Journal on Centers for Teaching and Learning, 8, 4-27.

Edwards, L. C. (2017). The craft of infusing critical thinking skills: A mixed-method research on implementation and student outcome. Journal on Centers for Teaching and Learning, 9, 47- 72.

Elder, L. & Paul, R. (2010). Critical thinking: competency standards essential for the cultivation of intellectual skills. Journal of Developmental Education, 34(2), 38-39.

Ennis, R. H. (1987). A taxonomy of critical thinking dispositions and abilities. In J. Baron & R. Sternberg (Eds.), Teaching thinking skills: Theory and practice (pp. 9-26). New York: W. H. Freeman.

Halpern, D. F., (1999). Teaching for critical thinking: Helping college students develop the skills and dispositions of a critical thinker. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 80, 69-74.

Mulnix, J. W. (2010). Thinking critically about critical thinking. Educational Philosophy and Theory, 44, 464-479. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-5812.2010.00673.x

Snyder, S.; Edwards, L. C., Sanders, A. (in press). An empirical model for infusing critical thinking into higher education. Journal on Excellence in College Teaching.

Tiruneh, D. T., Verburgh, A., Ellen, J (2014). Effectiveness of critical thinking instruction in higher education: A systematic review of intervention studies. Higher Education Studies 4(1), 1-17.

Tsui, L. (2008). Cultivating critical thinking: Insights from an elite liberal arts college. JGE: The Journal of General Education, 56(3-4), 200-227.

Six Tips for Teaching Writing in Psychology

(Past member) — Mon, 01 Jul 2019 13:42:06 GMT

Maria Wong (Stevenson University)

Since 2014, I have been teaching PSY 201: Writing for Psychology, which is a required writing intensive course for our Psychology majors. Initially, being in charge of this course was anxiety-provoking as I did not have any prior experience of teaching something similar. From my students’ perspective, taking another writing course after their two 100-level English courses was also not too exciting. Overtime, however, I have developed a strong passion for teaching this course. Not only do I enjoy teaching writing, I have also developed a few ideas based on evidence-based teaching principles to enhance the quality of my teaching. The purpose of this essay is to share these tips with fellow psychology instructors in the hope that they may find them helpful.

1. Create a positive and growth-oriented atmosphere

There is plenty of research highlighting the importance of passion and enthusiasm in teaching (Buskist, 2004). Being energetic and enthusiastic is particularly important for this course as students are likely to bring in their own misconceptions and biases about writing. Throughout the semester, I instill a growth mindset (Dweck, 2006) in my students to help them understand that writing ability is malleable rather than fixed, and everyone can be a better writer through deliberate practice. I explain that perfection is never our goal, but we should strive for incremental improvement. I share openly my own struggle with writing, particularly as an English learner, and my journey of becoming a better writer. Although students typically vary in their writing skills and preparedness, having a growth mindset helps them focus on the process of acquiring new writing skills. From my observations, students who have a growth mindset tend to ask more clarifying questions, work more collaboratively with others, and become more open to constructive feedback.

2. Be ready to revise assignments to better support learning objectives

Good teaching involves delineating clear learning objectives and developing relevant assignments (Hattie, 2011). When I first started teaching this course, we spent the first half of the semester working on the “outlier project” based on Gladwell’s (2008) book. This project included several components. First, outside of class, students read the book and wrote a 300-word summary based on each chapter. They then brought the written summary back for a class discussion on identifying the thesis and supporting evidence. The rest of class time was used for peer review, in which the students worked in small groups to read and provide constructive feedback for each other’s work. After finishing the summaries and peer reviews for the first five chapters of the book, students selected an outlier of their choice. They then thoroughly researched the background of this person and wrote a 10- to 12-page APA-style paper discussing the journey of how this person became an outlier based on Gladwell’s (2008) principles and ideas.

In a way, the outlier project offers several advantages. For one, Gladwell’s (2008) book is interesting and relatively easy to read. Second, the summaries provide great opportunities for students to practice writing thesis statements, topic sentences, transitions, and supporting evidence. Third, receiving feedback from myself and peers frequently within a short period of time helped to improve the quality of their work. Finally, the outlier paper helped students practice their organization and APA style. However, when we got to the literature review project, I found that students had not developed the necessary skills to read and understand empirical articles. Considering that one key learning objective of this course is to help students develop greater confidence in their comprehension of articles, I needed to develop a different project that used empirical articles as the main readings.

Beginning last semester, I replaced the outlier project with the “marshmallow project.” Commonly known as the delay-of-gratification test, the marshmallow test involves giving a preschool-age child the option of having a marshmallow immediately, or receiving a larger reward (i.e., two marshmallows) later if the child decides to wait and not consume the marshmallow immediately. The largest advantage of this project is that students are exposed to empirical articles early on, rather than waiting until they get to the literature review project. Specifically, students read three articles: one on the original marshmallow studies (Shoda, Mischel, & Peake, 1990), a study examining how the marshmallow test was related to body mass index decades later (Schlam, Wilson, Shoda, Mischel, & Ayduk, 2013), as well as a recent replication of the marshmallow study (Watts, Duncan, & Quan, 2018). For each of these articles, students were asked to write a 2-3 page (double-spaced) summary and critique. Using the feedback they received from myself and their peer reviewers, students wrote a short literature review (10-13 pages) based on the marshmallow test and its implications. The marshmallow project prepared them sufficiently for the literature review project, which I will explain later. I highly encourage instructors to evaluate the effectiveness of their assignments in light of the learning objectives.

3. Be mindful of scaffolding

In a nutshell, scaffolding (see Wood, Bruner, & Ross, 1976) requires the instructor to closely monitor the progress of the students and adjust the amount of guidance and support he/she provides as the students become more confident and competent. My teaching on reading comprehension of empirical articles is guided by the scaffolding principle. When students are first exposed to empirical articles, it is important to work with them at a slower pace and provide extra support. For example, I always give out hard copies of the articles so students can see what they are going to read. Together, we locate the different sections of an article, paying special attention to tables and figures as most students do not understand their significance. Following the suggestion from the University of Minnesota Libraries (2014), students read the articles according to this order: Abstract, Discussion, Introduction, Results, and Method. This method ensures that students get a good grasp of the main research question and findings without getting bogged down by complicated methodologies and statistics. During the next class period, students bring back their detailed notes and are ready for a class discussion. In addition to the content of the article, I validate my students’ feelings (including their insecurities) and encourage them to keep practicing their new reading techniques and not give up easily. By the end of the class discussion, students generally report that they have gained a much better understanding of the article and are ready to start writing their summary. Although it takes a lot of time to initially go over a single article, students are undoubtedly building their confidence.

In addition to reading comprehension, my design of the assignments is also guided by the scaffolding principle. For the marshmallow project, which takes place during the first half of the semester, I provide all the readings for my students and we take our time in discussing each article and the summaries and critiques that they write. In contrast, during the second half of this course, students completed a new literature review project in which they were in charge of conducting a literature search. The literature search was based on one of the three topics provided, reading and understanding empirical articles, writing and critiquing them, and organizing their ideas coherently into a 13- to 15-page APA-style paper. As such, the literature review project not only increased in the level of difficulty and complexity, it also required students to work more independently. For most students, the marshmallow project helped them developed the skills that they need to succeed in the literature review project.

4. Activate students’ knowledge

One of the biggest challenges for students is to make meaningful connections among various concepts. To this end, helping students generate accurate, relevant prior knowledge is likely to facilitate their learning of the new material (Garfield, Del Mas, & Chance, 2007). In my experience, I find it important to incorporate activities with the purpose of activating knowledge in students. In one activity, I provide a list of common keywords (e.g., confounds, replication, generalization of findings, correlation, causation, etc.) related to research methods and statistics that students have typically learned in their Introductory Psychology course. I then have students work in groups to discuss these terms, and as a class, we create concept maps to illustrate how these terms are relevant, which helps them develop their critiques. Not only do I demonstrate how important it is to have a clear and thoughtful argument prior to actual writing, I also show my students that prior knowledge plays an important role in writing process.

5. Use class time to refine writing skills

For the majority of my classes, I have used a flipped classroom approach (e.g., Wilson, 2013) and dedicated class time to refining student work through in-person feedback. With this approach, students are expected to be well-prepared and have their readings and assignments completed before coming to class. In my class, we have five peer-review sessions in which students work in their small groups to read and provide feedback for each other’s work. In addition, my teaching assistant and I also try to touch base with each student and provide some feedback for their writing in person. To this end, I find that students respond very well to clear and specific comments (e.g., “I like the level of detail that you have included in this paragraph. However, the sentences are pretty choppy in these places. What transitions can you use to smooth your writing out?”) than general comments (e.g., good job or unclear). I also find the use of a detailed grading rubric helpful in communicating my expectations clearly. The time students spend in revising their work also reinforces the growth mindset that I try to instill in them: through a lot of hard work and effort, all of us can become better writers.

6. Teach APA style throughout the semester

Based on the principle of spaced learning (e.g., Krug, Davis, & Glover, 1990), teaching APA style in one sitting is probably a bad idea. As such, I tend to incorporate the discussion of APA style throughout the semester. To start off, I discuss what plagiarism is and provide examples of real plagiarism cases (a scare tactic!). I then introduce APA style as a solution to avoid plagiarism. This approach helps students understand the usefulness of APA style as a tool. Throughout the semester, I provide different activities to help students practice paraphrasing using correct in text citations. In terms of teaching students the proper format of an APA style paper, I rely on the APA template available with Microsoft Word, as it spares us from creating a document from scratch. From time to time, students will need an extra boost to reinforce their learning of various APA rules. I find Kahoot! (available on kahoot.com for free) extremely useful in creating fun, engaging quizzes for the entire class. Moreover, the Teaching of Psychology Idea Exchange (ToPIX) found on the STP website also offers other engaging activities that can be incorporated to teach APA style more effectively throughout the semester.

Conclusion

In sum, I have offered six tips that instructors may find useful for teaching their writing course, which includes: (1) creating a positive and growth-oriented atmosphere, (2) revising assignments to better support learning objectives, (3) being mindful about scaffolding, (4) activating students’ knowledge, (5) using class time to refine writing skills, and (6) teaching APA style throughout the semester. Importantly, each of these ideas are based on evidence-based teaching principles. Future SoTL should consider testing some of these strategies that are specific to the context of teaching writing to determine their effectiveness.

References

Buskist, W. (2004). Ways of the master teacher. APS Observer, 17, 23-26.

Dweck, C. S. (2006). Mindset. New York: NY: Random House.

Garfield, J. B., Del Mas, R., & Chance, B. (2007). Using students’ informal notions of variability to develop an understanding of formal measures of variability. In M. C. Lovett, & P. Shah (Eds.), Thinking about Data (pp. 117-148). New York, NY: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

Gladwell, M. (2008). Outliers: The story of success. New York: Little, Brown and Co.

Hattie, J. (2011). Which strategies best enhance teaching and learning in higher education? In D. Mashek & E. Y. Hammer (Eds.), Empirical research in teaching and learning: Contributions from social psychology (pp. 130-142).

Krug, D., Davis, T., & Glover, J. A. (1990). Massed versus distributed repeated reading: A case of forgetting helping recall? Journal of Educational Psychology, 82, 366-371.

Schlam, T. R., Wilson, N. L., Shoda, Y., Mischel, W., & Ayduk, O. (2013). Preschoolers' delay of gratification predicts their body mass 30 years later. The Journal of Pediatrics, 162, 90-93.

Shoda, Y., Mischel, W., & Peake, P. K. (1990). Predicting adolescent cognitive and self-regulatory competencies from preschool delay of gratification: Identifying diagnostic conditions. Developmental Psychology, 26, 978-986.

Watts, T. W., Duncan, G. J., & Quan, H. (2018). Revisiting the Marshmallow Test: A Conceptual Replication Investigating Links Between Early Delay of Gratification and Later Outcomes. Psychological Science. doi: 10.1177/0956797618761661

Wilson, S. G. (2013). The flipped class: A method to address the challenges of an undergraduate statistics course. Teaching of Psychology, 40, 193-199.

Wood, D., Bruner, J. S., & Ross, G. (1976). The role of tutoring in problem solving. Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry, 17, 89-100.

University of Minnesota Libraries. (2014). How to read and comprehend scientific research articles: How to read, take effective notes, and find the main points in scientific research articles. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2K6mJkSWoA

No Need to Stew about Factor Analysis: Two Homecooked Demonstrations

(Past member) — Sun, 02 Jun 2019 23:52:03 GMT

Ken Cramer (University of Windsor)

Rebecca Pschibul (Western University)

Statistical concepts may be among the most challenging for students to grasp in the course of their undergraduate education. Among others, these may include several widely employed statistical concepts such as random sampling, random assignment to groups, correlation vs. causation, Type I vs. Type II errors, and the selection of median vs. mean statistics in the presence of extreme scores (i.e., average income). Researchers and educators have made considerable strides in rendering these everyday concepts accessible to students via memorable examples, vivid demonstrations and simulations. For instance, students can see the folly in misconstruing the correlation between city parades staged for national sports champions to prematurely hosting such a grand display one week before the big game. Students similarly can appreciate the greater risk associated with sending the innocent to jail, or worse (a Type-I error) rather than letting the guilty go free (a Type-II error).

More advanced statistical concepts will arguably prove more challenging to students, and demonstrations to make these units more digestible are underway. One such concept, although widespread in its application, has proven particularly thorny to pass along clearly to students – namely factor analysis, a complex statistical data-reduction technique. Factor analysis reduces a larger set of entities or measures into a smaller set of families, or factors, whose constituent members are intercorrelated (Tabachnik & Fidell, 2013). For example, one may derive a series of physical measures of a given individual – including height, head size, hand span, foot size, distance from elbow to wrist, etc. – and find that all measures are moderately to highly intercorrelated based on a singular over-arching latent factor which we might call Body Size. There is no direct way to measure a latent factor; it can only be derived or estimated based on its constituent measures; but the concept is real and directly impacts the derivative means of its assessment (namely, item scores on a personality or intelligence questionnaire or numbers on a tape measure).

Factor analysis is used widely across a host of fields in biology, education, and in particular the social sciences like psychology. Whether to develop psychometrically sound instruments to measure complex constructs like intelligence or personality, or to determine the degree of overlap between various existing measures of self-esteem, factor analysis can rarely be avoided in a student’s undergraduate statistical training. Until the advent of faster and more high-powered computers, a typical factor analysis would take the researcher approximately one year in hand calculations (which included deriving relevant correlation matrices, standard deviations, and then combined into covariance matrices). Nevertheless, in spite of its easy of execution, students may still fail to appreciate the interplay of the analysis involved, its subjectivity, and the nature of interpretation; thus, we offer the instructor a hands-on, and memorable, pair of useful demonstrations to help instill this material. Efforts to make the lesson engaging has all too often utilized a mathematical approach, and implemented graphs and animations (Connor, 2003; Segrist & Powlow, 2007; Yu, Andrews, Winogard, Jannasch-Pennell, & DeGangi, 2002). Our intention is to move beyond the mathematical world and embrace a rather more substantive and practical world through hands-on activity.

Demonstration with a Known Factor Structure (Stew Recipe)

Students can readily understand how a grocery list may be rendered more efficient if sorted into general categories within the geography of a department store – fruits and vegetables, meats and dairy, spices and sauces, etc. This model, on the surface, illustrates the sorting of food stuffs into general categories where the constituent members share a particular feature (the all dairy items need to be refrigerated), and it offers a starting point to the concept of factor analysis.

The following demonstration utilizes this model of shopping for stew ingredients to show the different categorizations, and member constituencies, taken from a grocery list. Students are invited to the front of a classroom to draw one of 30 cards (see Appendix A) from a mixed deck, each representing one of the many ingredients of a stew. Knowing the final configuration (namely the number and relative constituency of how the cards are grouped), students move about the room and self-sort to form their respective categories – Meats, Vegetables, Liquids, and Spices/Sauces (or Flavorings).

Once in their categories, members of each group are asked to designate both their strongest and weakest member; for example, Vegetables might elect ‘potato’ as their strongest, and ‘onion’ as their weakest. This represents a useful vehicle toward understanding factor loadings (or the relative contribution of any constituent entity or measure to a factor). For instance, in the field of intelligence, the subtest of Vocabulary is the strongest single predictor of mental abilities, and Object Assembly is the weakest (Wechsler, 2008).

Questions for Probing Student Knowledge

Students may be asked further questions to strengthen their understanding of factor analysis. We include several examples below:

Following students’ identification of the weakest members of a category (e.g., onions among a stew’s Vegetables), could the contribution of an entity be so low that it fails to meet cut-off criteria and is excluded from further consideration? That is, in terms of factor analysis, the under-representative entity would showcase an especially low loading that one may argue does not contribute to the understanding or definition of the factor (and should not be included). In other words, could it be argued that a stew need not include onions; but potatoes are a must?
Are there any broad categorical names (e.g., Spices) where a more suitable alternative might be used (e.g., Flavoring) – that is, perhaps unique nomenclature surrounds the designation of a factor (personality has wrestled with how to name components of the Big-Five – is it Openness to Experience or Culture or Intelligence; see McCrae & Costa, 1996), and does this invite subjectivity to this field of study?
Could any of the broad categories (Flavourings) be further divided into correlated, but still distinct, sub-categories (Spices and Sauces), and would it improve the understanding of the configuration or structure of a stew to split them? Consider how loneliness, originally thought to have two factors (Social Loneliness and Emotional Loneliness) found the latter sub-divided into Family and Romantic Loneliness (Cramer, Ofosu, & Barry, 2000
What is to be done with entities not finding a genuine home among any one category but perhaps shared among two? What categories might best situate the entity of tomato sauce – it is arguably a Liquid, but it adds Flavouring, so might it better be included among Spices?

Demonstration with an Unknown Factor Structure (Parts of the Body)

Students are then invited to participate in a similar activity with a second deck of cards (see Appendix B; Parts of the Body) with a factor structure unknown to them. Students may be similarly probed using this deck of cards: (a) which entity in any family or factor might be its best representative, and what might be the worst? (2) where should one attribute the entity of ‘skull’ – does this belong to Bones or to Face; perhaps both, but which might be stronger?

Similar follow-up questions may be probed to further student understanding of a factor structure with no a-priori hypothesized structure (based on number or constituency).

Are there especially strong or especially weak members of any given category? Students working in the Bones category may struggle to find a high contributing entity, but skin may almost be dismissed from the category of Organs should students debate its belongingness. Is skin even an organ? It is, say biologists – the largest, in fact.
Students may encounter disagreement concerning the naming of a category: Bones vs. Skeleton, Head vs. Cranium, Bodily Liquids vs. Bodily Fluids – preferring scientific nomenclature over more common everyday language.
Students might discover cross-listed entities such as the brain belonging both to the categories of Organs and Head. So too, the entity of skull may belong both to Head and Bones. Hereto, students may uncover a stronger belongingness or loading of skull to Head (after all, what is a head without the skull). The entity of tears is arguably a Bodily Fluid, but tears originate from the Face/Head. As such, this conflict (of finding the right home for a given body part) may help students to see the differences in factor loadings when entities belong to multiple categories.
What is to be done with entities that struggle to find a suitable home among any of the identified categories? Consider hair, which may belong at first glance to the category of Head, but this may also include bodily hair not found on the head.

Conclusion

These two examples should help students vividly remember the mechanics and inner-workings of factor analysis. The probing questions should offer a lasting analysis that they may apply in later courses of theory, research, and statistical methods.

References

Connor, J. (2003). Making statistics come alive: Using space and students’ bodies to illustrate statistical concepts. Teaching of Psychology, 30, 141.

Cramer, K. M., Ofosu, H. B., & Barry, J. E. (2000). An abbreviated form of the Social and Emotional Loneliness Scale for Adults (SELSA). Personality and Individual Differences, 28, 1125-1131.

McCrae, R. R., & Costa, P. T., Jr. (1996). Toward a new generation of personality theories: Theoretical contexts for the five-factor model. In J. S. Wiggins (Ed.), The five-factor model of personality: Theoretical perspectives (pp. 51-87). New York: Guilford.

Segrist, D. J., Pawlow, L. A. (2007). The mixer: Introducing the concept of factor analysis. Teaching of Psychology, 34, 121-123.

Tabachnik, B. G., & Fidell, L. (2013). Using multivariate statistics. (6^th ed.). Toronto: Pearson.

Wechsler, D. (2008). Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Adults – Fourth Edition. San Antonio, TX: Pearson.

Yu, C. H., Andrews, S., Winogard, D., Jannasch-Pennell, A., & DiGangi, S. A. (2002). Teaching factor analysis in terms of variable space and subject space using multimedia visualization. Journal of Statistics Education, 10.

Appendix-A: Stew Ingredients

Meats (beef, chicken, lamb, pork); Vegetables (potatoes, carrots, onions, celery, mushrooms); Liquids (water, tomato sauce, tomato paste, soy sauce); Spices (salt, pepper, garlic, oregano, sage, thyme)

Appendix-B: Parts of the Body

Face (eyes, nose, mouth, ears, tongue, chin, cheek, hair), Organs (lungs, heart, kidney, liver, brain, spleen, skin); Bodily Fluids (blood, urine, pus, tears, bile, phlegm); Bones (femur, tibia, ulna, skull, ribs, radius)

Using psychophysiology technology in general psychology to engage students

(Past member) — Thu, 02 May 2019 19:55:14 GMT

Kameko Halfmann (University of Wisconsin – Platteville)

I remember the first semester I taught general psychology, fresh, energetic, and a little bit naive. Relatively new to teaching, I would read students’ essays and exams, often in frustration when students clung to misconceptions of psychology that I thought I had adequately dispelled. “How do they not remember me explaining this?!” I would wonder in despair. Since then, it has become one of my missions to figure out how to more effectively teach and dispel these common misconceptions.

Indeed, students walk into general psychology with a common sense understanding of human behavior, often heavily influenced by popular science and armed with misconceptions (Lilienfeld, Lohr, & Morier, 2016). Teaching general psychology, I learned, compels active myth busting to help students understand human cognition and behavior through a scientific lens. Best practices in teaching and learning include providing meaningful examples (e.g., Ausubel, 1968), encouraging student cooperation and teamwork (e.g., Johnson, Johnson, & Smith, 1998), and active learning (e.g., Kellum Carr & Dozier, 2001), to name a few.

Over my handful of semesters as an assistant professor, I’ve leaned on these best practices, attempting to incorporate more examples and active learning into all of my courses. I occasionally collected data, dipping my toes into Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL); the data always letting me know that students felt like the activities helped them learn.

I specifically developed an interest in teaching with technology. This interest grew from another revelation I had: students are not, so to speak, the digital natives we think they are (Prensky, 2001). Students use technology frequently, but the Education Center for Analysis and Research (ECAR) suggests student tech use is broad, not deep. Moreover, ECAR’s report (2018) indicates students still need support to use technology in meaningful ways. Similarly, Beetham and Sharpe (2007) indicate that students do not necessarily have the “habits of practice” for navigating new technology. So, I began to incorporate assignments and activities that forced students to use technology in educational ways. For example, I incorporated social media assignments into several of my courses.

Then, last year, I had the chance to apply for an in-house grant titled “Innovations in Teaching with Technology.” I decided to apply with the goal to purchase Neulog plug-and-play psychophysiology modules. These modules are relatively inexpensive, easy to use, transportable technology that would allow me to incorporate psychophysiology into my courses. Previous research suggested using technology, such as portable EEG, correlated with enhanced attention, interest, and exam scores (Stewart, 2015). Labs such as these would allow students to “do” psychology and bring course content to life (Dunn, McCarthy, Baker, Halonen, & Hill, 2007) rather than having a lecturer “tell” students about experiments.

In particular, I thought, psychology students tend to struggle to understand concepts associated with the biological basis of behavior; therefore, employing active learning methods to bring these concepts to life in lab sessions could be especially impactful (Thibodeau, 2011). I ended up receiving the grant. I also decided it was time for me to more seriously assess my teaching using SoTL.

Initially, I developed one activity, designed to dispel the lie detector myth (i.e., the myth that “the polygraph is an accurate means of detecting dishonesty,” Lilienfeld, Lynn, Ruscio, & Beyerstein, 2010). Students observed me give a demonstration with a student volunteer, showing how to use the equipment. They also saw, through the demonstration, how several stimuli could elicit an electrodermal response. For example, I would have the volunteer take a deep breath, smell a scented candle, and, if they let me, I’d touch their ear with the eraser of a pencil. Each of these stimuli caused an electrodermal response. In other words, the demonstration showed students how the supposed lie detector test was really just measuring autonomic nervous system activity, and many stimuli, not just lying, could lead to changes in sympathetic nervous system arousal. Students then gathered in groups of 5 or 6 and engaged with the technology themselves for about 25 minutes.

The first semester I used this activity, students reported that the activity improved the quality of the course, helped them understand concepts, helped them connect to others, promoted professional growth, enhanced their experience of participation and should be used more often. Each rating was significantly higher than a neutral baseline, with relatively large effect sizes. The following semester, I decided to take this research a step further: did the students actually understand the content better?

In order to pursue this question, I needed another activity that was similar but covered unique content compared to the first. I decided to develop a biofeedback activity using the electrocardiogram module. Students, again, watched a demonstration on how to use the technology and then engaged with the technology, testing how various stimuli affect heart rate and answering questions related to biofeedback.

I was teaching three sections of general psychology last semester when I assessed student understanding before and after engaging in these activities. Early-ish in the semester, when we were covering stress and emotion, I implemented these two activities (i.e., the lie detector activity and the biofeedback activity) over the course of two class periods, using a nonequivalent group pre-test/post-test design. On the first day, all of my students across three sections of general psychology took a pre-quiz related to the autonomic nervous system and why the polygraph is not considered an accurate index of lying. Two sections participated in the activity using the Neulog technology (lie detector active group). The third section participated in a lecture/discussion on the same topic (biofeedback active group). All sections took a post-quiz.

The following class period, I flipped the groups. The section that had previously participated in a lecture/discussion did the biofeedback activity (i.e., the biofeedback active group) and the other two sections engaged in lecture/discussion on the same topic (i.e., the lie detector active group). Everyone took a pre-quiz and post-quiz again. I also included four questions (two per content type) on the following exam and two questions on the final exam (one per content type) to assess learning.

What did I learn? Did the activities work? To be honest, the main thing I learned were the many challenges associated with conducting SoTL research. I did not find an effect of activity on understanding. Neither activity seemed to help or hurt student understanding of the content. But I did see an effect of activity group: one of my groups was outperforming the other overall: the biofeedback active group performed better, on average, across all assessments. I also found an effect of question content: the biofeedback-associated questions were easier, hitting a ceiling for the biofeedback active group on the exam. I also found an effect of time, where students improved from the pre-quiz to post-quiz (for the lie detector active group) and from post-quiz to exam (for the biofeedback active group). But none of these effects interacted with the activity group that students were in. Based on these assessments, participating in an active learning lesson did not boost performance relative to a more lecture-based lesson.

But back to some of the lessons I learned about SoTL: Determining an appropriate method of assessment was challenging. I clearly used questions that were not well-matched in difficulty across content. I also tried to use variations of similar questions over the course of the semester for the different assessment time points; however, some of the questions were clearly more challenging than others. So, my first major lesson was

Pretest assessment questions so they are matched on difficulty across content type and time of assessment.

Another challenge related to my assessment was selecting an appropriate number of questions. I didn’t want this one topic related to my activities to take over my exams, and I ended up using fewer questions than I should have used to gauge student understanding. I also solely relied on multiple choice questions. My second main lesson was

Use several questions and question types to assess understanding over the course of the semester.

Neither of these lessons are particularly surprising (e.g., see http://regangurung.com/scholarship-of-teaching-and-learning-sotl/ for resources on SoTL), but they do take time and forethought to exercise well. Having assessed students several times now, I can better construct my assessments to reflect student understanding and not simply difficulty or other artifacts.

I also attempted to assess students’ understanding at the end of the semester and included two key questions on the cumulative final exam. However, I decided to drop students’ lowest exam of five this semester, and so for many of the students, the cumulative final exam was optional, and only 37 students out of 100 took the final exam. This was the first time I used five exams, including a cumulative final, and it was the first semester I decided to drop the lowest exam. I did not anticipate such a low proportion of students would take the final exam. Although not directly related to my SoTL project, I would not use this set up again. Not only did many students miss out on an important learning opportunity (i.e., taking the final exam), it reduced my analytic power for this research.

Another challenge I ran into were nonequivalent groups. There are two solutions to this problem that come to mind. First, I could collect more data with a new sample. Second, I could use random assignment to split my classes into two groups and invite only half of my students to participate in each activity (giving the other half a day off or a recorded lecture). Hopefully, this semester, I’ll collect more data in different courses and reach out to students from last semester to see if I can capture one more assessment from them to measure longer-term retention of material. Ideally, I will collect the new data using the random assignment technique to split my classes.

I clearly ran into several limitations that prevented me from drawing confident conclusions at the end of the semester. I don’t know if I will ever be fully satisfied with my teaching or if it is possible to design a perfect SoTL project. Each semester, it seems my students challenge me in new ways, reigniting my mission to find a better way to teach a concept or dispel a misconception. And in following semesters, I respond by tweaking my courses, and sometimes by completely overhauling a course. I’ll continue to lean on other’s research as I slowly accumulate my own SoTL. I hope this research encourages others to put their own teaching to the test. You may discover something works better or worse than you thought. Or, like me, you might just be at the starting point for figuring out how to best assess student learning to determine what works.

References

American Psychological Association. (2014). Strengthening the common core of the Introductory Psychology Course. Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, Board of Educational Affairs. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/ed/governance/bea/intro-psych-report.pdf

Ausubel, D. P. (1968). Educational Psychology: A Cognitive View. New York: Holt, Rinehart, & Winston.

Beetham, H., & Sharpe, R. (2007). An introduction to rethinking pedagogy for a digital age. In Beetham, H., & Sharpe, R. (eds), Rethinking Pedagogy for a Digital Age: Designing and Delivering e-Learning. New York, NY: Routledge.

Dunn, D. S., McCarthy, M. A., Baker, S., Halonen, J. S., & Hill, G. W. (2007). Quality benchmarks in undergraduate psychology programs. American Psychologist, 7, 650-670. DOI: 10.1037/0003-066X.62.7.650

EDUCAUSE Center for Analysis and Research. (2018). The ECAR study of undergraduate students and information technology. Louisville, CO: ECAR. Retrieved from https://library.educause.edu/~/media/files/library/2018/10/studentitstudy2018.pdf?la=en

Johnson, D. W., Johnson, R. T., & Smith, K. A. (1998). Cooperative learning returns to college: What evidence is there that it works? Change: The Magazine of Higher Learning, 30, 27-38. https://doi.org/10.1080/00091389809602629

Kellum, K. K., Carr, J. E., & Dozier, C. L. (2001). Response-card instruction and student learning in a college classroom. Teaching of Psychology, 28(2), 101-104.
http://dx.doi.org/10.1207/S15328023TOP2802_06

Lilienfeld, S. O., Lohr, J. M., & Morier, D. (2001). The Teaching of Courses in the Science and Pseudoscience of Psychology: Useful Resources. Teaching of Psychology, 28(3), 182–191. https://doi.org/10.1207/S15328023TOP2803_03

Lilienfeld, S.O., Lynn, S.J., Ruscio, J., & Beyerstein, B.J. (2010). 50 great myths of popular psychology: Shattering widespread misconceptions about human behavior. New York: Wiley-Blackwell.

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9, 1-6.

Stewart, P. C. (2015). This is your brain on psychology: Wireless electroencephalography technology in a university classroom. Teaching of Psychology, 42, 234-241. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628315587621

Thibodeau, R. (2011). Design and implementation of an undergraduate laboratory course in psychophysiology. Teaching of Psychology, 38, 259-261. https://doi.org/10.1177/0098628311421325

Modified team-based learning: Does it impact students’ empathy and perceived social support?

(Past member) — Tue, 02 Apr 2019 13:48:18 GMT

Sharon Claffey (Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts)

Active learning is a popular classroom technique that shows up in several forms. Classrooms are “flipped” and class time is devoted to activities rather than requiring students to simply listen to lecture. Team Based Learning (TBL) is a form of small group learning that is centered on student experience and interaction (Michaelsen & Sweet, 2008) and is very structured in its design. In my past TBL courses, students would read the material independently and then come to class ready to take a Readiness Assessment Measure (RAM) independently, and then immediately take a RAM as a team effort. The rest of the course time would be divided into team activities and, less frequently, independent assignments.

When I taught courses using the TBL approach, I was not entirely happy with the rigidity of the design. As with any course design, I found students who loved the TBL approach and students who hated it. Particularly, I found that students quickly learned which teammate was the strongest academically and often defaulted to that student (e.g., having that particular student complete the team RAM without input from the rest of the team). This reduction in activity for some students contradicted the point of TBL and frustrated the students who felt they were carrying their team.

Consequently, I opted to take the parts of the TBL classroom that I loved (i.e., the active learning) and create a modified approach that was less reliant on strict formatting. The core goal of the TBL design is to shift the focus of class time from lecture to more active participation and application exercises that facilitate learning and promote critical thinking about the material. Group activities have been shown to increase retention of material along with student satisfaction (Drouin, 2010), and to increase performance on objective knowledge assessments followed by students’ ratings of their ability to apply knowledge (Kreiner, 2009).

While most research on TBL focuses on learning and classroom performance (e.g. Jakobsen, McIlreavy, & Marrs, 2014; Liu & Beaujean, 2017), I decided to examine the impact TBL has on empathy and social support among the students. This took the essence of TBL, but not the assessment (i.e., the active learning remained intact, but not the traditional TBL grading structure). Would active learning and increased interaction among small groups affect the students’ classroom experience? Specifically, I wanted to examine if students in an active learning environment had more empathy and felt like they received more social support (both social and instrumental) from their classmates.

I compared students from my two sections of Social Psychology (taught in consecutive class periods in the same room). Students in both sections of the course received traditional lecture during the first half of the semester. This was intended to ensure that students had time to get used to the material and exam formats and because I wanted to avoid potential regression to the mean. After the second exam, the students in both sections were randomly assigned into teams which they sat with during that portion of the course. In my experience, students tend to start a semester sitting near people they know and also tend to stay in those seats throughout the semester. I didn’t want their friendships to impact potential empathy and social support rather than course design. After the change in seating arrangement, one randomly assigned section of the course used a modified TBL approach. The modified TBL section and the lecture based section received the same lectures (available online) and exams, but the lecture based students did not complete the classroom activities and received the lecture during class time in addition to having the lecture available online.

Students were given two surveys: 1) after the second exam and immediately after being placed in teams and 2) after the third exam. After the end of the semester, I found that the classes weren’t different in measurements of Empathy or Emotional Social Support. I also found that the two sections did not differ in the reports of information or advice received from classmates on the first measurement of informational social support (which was after placement in new tables but before the active learning component began). At the second measurement, the modified TBL students had higher reports of receiving information or advice from classmates than the lecture group. While this is encouraging, it could simply be an artifact of students needing to work together to complete the team assignments. Thus, it is possible that the informational support was specific to course material and not information relevant to other topics.

I then examined some other factors to explore potential differences. While the modified TBL students missed more classes on the first measurement than the lecture students, there was no difference between the sections on classes missed on the second measurement. Perhaps the active learning environment increased students’ attendance in addition to impacting students’ perceptions of importance of lecture (since it was rated less important by modified TBL students on the second measurement).

Peterson (2016) found that students in an active learning environment outperformed students in a lecture section of the same class. I found that students in the modified TBL section improved on exam scores, but not the lecture students. I also found on the second measurement a difference between the reports of how important lecture was to understanding the course material, with the modified TBL students reporting it of less importance than the lecture students. While this could be explained by hindsight bias, it is interesting to note that the modified TBL students had better exam grades on the second measurement.

In addition, I found that the TBL class also had a lower expected course grade on second measurement than first measurement. This is similar to the Dunning-Kruger effect (Kruger & Dunning, 1999), although not tied to cognitive ability, but exposure to material in additional ways. I will also mention that there was no difference between sections on actual course grade. Similar to other researchers (e.g., Travis, Hudson, Henricks-Lepp, Street, & Weidenbenner, 2016), course satisfaction was not impacted.

Comparing the two classrooms was informative, but I also wanted to examine any differences that happened between the measurements within each class structure. There were no differences on course rating, importance of lecture, classes missed, or student effort put into the class. This is interesting because it indicates that the shift from lecture to active learning did not impact the students in those areas. I have had students tell me that they either love or hate a flipped classroom, so I suppose it is possible that students who like the course began to dislike it (and vice versa) which washed out any differences.

In conclusion, I found there were only some benefits to the modified TBL. While some may find this disappointing, I actually take comfort that there was no difference between course grade or course satisfaction. This gives me freedom in the future to shift the style of the course (between passive and active) without fear that I will be negatively impacting students. Such a shift would prevent stagnation in my teaching style and keep me active and engaged (which I would argue is also important for successful student experiences).

References

Drouin, M. A. (2010). Group-based formative summative assessment relates to improved student performance and satisfaction. Teaching of Psychology, 37, 114-118.

Kreiner, D.S. (2009). Problem-based group activities for teaching sensation and perception. Teaching of Psychology, 36, 253-256.

Jakobsen, K.V., McIlreavy, M., & Marrs, S. (2014). Team-based Learning: the importance of attendance. Psychology Learning and Teaching, 13, 25-31.

Kruger, J., & Dunning, D. (1999). Unskilled and unaware of it: How difficulties in recognizing one’s own incompetence lead to inflated self-assessments. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 77(6), 1121-1134.

Liu, S.N.C., & Beaujean, A.A. (2017). The effectiveness of Team-Based Learning on academic outcomes: A meta-analysis. Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Psychology, 3, 1–14.

Michaelsen, L.K., & Sweet, M. (2008). The essential elements of Team-Based Learning. New Directions for Teaching and Learning, 116, 7-27.

Peterson, D. J. (2016). The flipped classroom improves student achievement and course satisfaction in a statistics course: A quasi-experimental study. Teaching of Psychology, 43(1), 10-15.

Travis, L. L., Hudson, N. W., Henricks-Lepp, G. M., Street, W. S., & Weidenbenner, J. (2016). Team-Based Learning improves course outcomes in Introductory Psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 43(2), 99-107.

Student-Led Discussions that Really Work

(Past member) — Sat, 02 Mar 2019 16:06:41 GMT

Carolyn Brown-Kramer (University of Nebraska-Lincoln)

On the first day of the semester, students in my Advanced Social Psychology course learn that they will be required to facilitate two hour-long group discussions, and to contribute substantially to discussions throughout the semester. Several panic, most are anxious, and a few drop the course.

On the last day of the semester, an hour flies by as students discuss social psychological theories and concepts, empirical articles, real-world applications, and what they have gained from the very process of discussion itself. They pose questions to each other, disagree, draw connections across units, give each other shout-outs for making insightful points, and laugh together as friends.

What happens in the intervening 15 weeks between the first day and the last day?

Why student-led discussion?

Discussion helps students use higher-level cognitive processes to analyze problems (Bloom et al., 1956) and to identify connections within and across courses and to life outside the classroom (Svinicki & McKeachie, 2014). In addition, students learn to engage actively in class (Cashin, 2011), identify the limits of their understanding, and use peers’ insights to fill in these gaps (Cashin, 2011). Student-led discussions further increase these benefits relative to instructor-led discussions (Casteel & Bridges, 2007). In other words, once students have established a basic knowledge base through lecture, readings, or other content delivery methods, discussions help them learn deeply and extend their learning to new circumstances.

In my 40-student senior-level Advanced Social Psychology course, students explore a series of controversial issues (e.g., “Is ‘hookup culture’ harmful to young adults?”) from multiple perspectives, each beginning with a day of instructor-led lecture, two assigned articles representing opposing sides of the issue, and an out-of-class written assignment to help them process the articles. During the next class period, students spend 45 minutes in small-group discussion, in which groups of about 13 students are led by two student co-facilitators assigned to represent the two sides of the issue. The student co-facilitators are tasked with presenting additional empirical research and working together to engage all group members throughout the discussion. They help students draw connections to the real world, pose thought-provoking questions to stimulate deep conversation, answer questions about the readings and the research articles they presented, and contrast evidence from multiple sources to help their peers understand the nuances of the issue. On each discussion day we reserve the last 15 minutes of class to form one large circle to discuss the major arguments, evidence, and themes brought up in the small groups to cross-pollinate ideas throughout the class.

These discussions—both small-group and whole-class—are student-led. I do not talk, except to call for the discussions to begin, transition, and end. I don’t call on reticent students, and I don’t jump in to save facilitators who are struggling. And believe it or not, it works, nearly all the time and for nearly all of my students.

Keys to successful student-led discussion

Over the eight semesters I have taught this class, I have developed a repertoire of helpful techniques for establishing good groups, helping students develop their skill at facilitating discussion, setting clear expectations for discussion participation, and giving students opportunities for improvement.

1. Create effective discussion groups. Based on a self-report inventory students complete at the beginning of the semester, I form discussion groups that are heterogeneous in demographics and personality to increase students’ exposure to ideas that differ from their own, and to balance introverted and extraverted students.
2. Ensure students arrive prepared for discussion. I use written assignments that require students to read the assigned articles carefully, to respond in ways that tie together lecture and readings, and to generate their own discussion questions that they are encouraged to bring up in their groups (Connor-Greene, 2005; West, 2018). Students comment that having to discuss the articles with peers motivates them to read more closely: “This class forced me to sit down and decipher each article in order to understand the material. However, it didn’t end at simply understanding the article but also being able to efficiently communicate what the articles were about.”
3. Foster community within discussion groups. Students stay in the same discussion groups throughout the semester to increase camaraderie and accountability, establish group norms, and help students make connections with ideas raised previously. On most discussion days, I hear at least one remark along the lines of, “Didn’t you say a couple of weeks ago something about…” or “This reminds me of our discussion last week in which….”
4. Mentor effective discussion facilitation. I explicitly teach students how to lead effective discussions via assigned readings (i.e., Cashin & McKnight, 1986; Nunn, 1996) and engage in whole-class discussion at the beginning of the course (Brank & Wylie, 2013). This helps set clear expectations and build discussion facilitators’ comfort and confidence. Throughout the course, but especially toward the beginning of the semester when groups are still establishing their norms, I remind facilitators that their role includes managing both quieter and more talkative members to engage all participants (Svinicki & McKeachie, 2011), and I remain “on call” for any facilitators who struggle with this.
5. Provide common ground for all students to start from. Evidence suggests that providing a shared basis for discussion increases participants’ comfort and engagement (Svinicki & McKeachie, 2011). Each week, all students in the class attend the same lecture, read the same assigned articles, respond to the same set of prompts on their written assignment, and generate their own discussion questions. In addition, I begin each discussion day with a brief multimedia piece introducing a new aspect of the week’s controversial issue (e.g., for the hookup culture week, we listen to the NPR Hidden Brain episode “Just Sex”). Introverted students typically feel more comfortable drawing upon some aspect of these shared experiences, such as presenting a new interpretation of the material or analyzing how the assigned articles fit together. Extraverted students, in contrast, seem to enjoy driving the conversation in new directions, often drawing connections to the real world or to other coursework within or outside of psychology.
6. Establish shared expectations for engagement. I am transparent in my expectations and grading, providing feed-forward in the form of detailed syllabus statements and grading rubrics for both discussion participation and facilitation. In addition, students are given feedback based on instructor ratings, TA ratings, peer ratings, and their own self-ratings of discussion participation and facilitation. I provide both formative and summative feedback to participants and facilitators as soon as possible after discussions to help students identify and correct inappropriate expectations (Burchfield & Sappington, 1999; Krohn et al., 2011).
7. Build student skills throughout the semester. Being an effective discussion participant takes practice, as does being an effective discussion facilitator. Students have the opportunity to participate in 11 discussions throughout the semester and to facilitate discussions twice with different co-facilitators each time. Following each experience facilitating discussion, students write a metacognitive self-reflection essay indicating what went well and what they want to improve next time. After making changes during their second experience facilitating discussion, students express tremendous pride at their improvement. It is incredibly rewarding for me, as well, to see students’ active listening skills, preparation, professionalism, and confidence increase throughout the semester, and to hear their plans for using these skills in the future. As one student commented, “Sometimes I think it can be more frightening sitting in a group discussion than standing on stage, because in a group discussion people are engaging on the facts that the speaker is presenting. That can put a lot of pressure on that personal speaker. That is something I learned not to be afraid of anymore.”
8. Facilitate peer-to-peer advice. Here’s my favorite activity in this course. On the first day of class, I give my students each a sealed envelope containing a letter written by a student at the end of the previous semester of the course. As students read and compare letters in small groups, they begin to identify themes in their peers’ advice. Most commonly students are advised to keep up with the readings, to participate actively in discussion even if they’re nervous, and to seek help when they need it. By hearing the same advice from multiple sources, and by hearing it from their peers rather than from their professor, they take the advice seriously. This exercise also increases students’ sense of community right away and models healthy risk-taking—an important step in building trust and increasing their own willingness to “put themselves out there.” Sixteen weeks later, at the end of the semester, the students write their own letters to future students (Gooblar, 2015; Lang, 2016; Norcross, Slotterback, & Krebs, 2001).

Effectiveness of student-led discussion

Daily participation rates. I examined the proportion of students earning full credit, partial credit, or no credit for participation in discussion on a week-by-week basis across four semesters of Advanced Social Psychology. For example, for a class of 34 students with 13 weeks of discussion, there were a total of 442 opportunities in which students could earn full, partial, or no credit for their discussion participation. Students earned full credit on 87.5% of discussion days (range: 85.8 to 89.5%), partial credit on 7.8% of discussion days (range: 6.3 to 9.9%), and no credit on 4.7% of discussion days (range: 0.6 to 7.6%). Put another way, combining across students and across weeks, fewer than five percent of students failed to participate on any given day of discussion, and well over three-quarters of students earned full participation credit on any given day—a far cry from traditional discussions in which only a quarter of students participate (Karp & Yoels, 1976, as cited in Nunn, 1996).

Student evaluations of teaching (SETs). On end-of-semester SETs across two semesters (N = 64), 48 students (75%) indicated that they had improved “quite a bit” or “a great deal” at leading small group discussions. In their open-ended responses, a number of students indicated that this was among their favorite classes (n = 28), that they found discussions to be a helpful way to learn (n = 27), that they welcomed controversy or opposing arguments to enrich group discussions (n = 13), that discussions helped them apply class content to real life (n = 11), and that leading—not just participating in—discussions helped them learn (n = 10).

Student-led discussion is by no means perfect. Even with all of the above techniques and with face-to-face meetings with struggling students, each semester there are still a couple of students who rarely contribute to discussion and a couple of students who tend to dominate the discussion. Students sometimes make rude, offensive, or off-color comments, and although the groups tend to self-regulate and stop such behavior, occasionally I have to step in. I haven’t yet found a panacea for these problems entirely, but the above techniques do help. For the vast majority of students, student-led discussion is an enjoyable, rewarding, intellectually stimulating classroom technique. Just see for yourself in these students’ comments on end-of-semester evaluations:

· “I feel that especially through group discussions, I have been able to deeply understand the complexity of social psychology concepts, and even apply them to real-world situations, or to other concepts.”
· “[Discussion] made me learn so much more than just lecture alone. It provided new insight, ideas, and thoughtful consideration.”
· “I now feel more confident to disagree (even if to just play devil’s advocate) in an academic conversation, as that is one of the easiest ways to encourage people to think beyond their own perception or perspective.”
· “I feel confident enough now explaining and applying social psychology topics into everyday life, which clearly stem from being able to discuss the topics. Discussing these topics forced me to become comfortable talking about them, and learning how to do so.”

References

Bloom, B. S., Engelhart, M. D., Furst, E. J., Hill, W. H., & Krathwohl, D. R. (1956). The taxonomy of educational objectives: Handbook 1, the cognitive domain. New York: David McKay.

Brank, E., & Wylie, L. (2013). Let’s discuss: Teaching student about discussions. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 13, 23-32.

Burchfield, C. M., & Sappington, J. (1999). Participation in classroom discussion. Teaching of Psychology, 26, 290-291.

Cashin, W. E. (2011). Effective classroom discussions. IDEA Paper No. 49. Manhattan, KS: The IDEA Center.

Cashin, W. E., & McKnight, P. C. (1986). Improving discussions. IDEA Paper No. 15. Manhattan, KS: Kansas State University.

Casteel, M. A., & Bridges, K. R. (2007). Goodbye lecture: A student-led seminar approach for teaching upper division courses. Teaching of Psychology, 34, 107-110.

Connor-Greene, P. A., (2005). Fostering meaningful classroom discussion: Student-generated questions, quotations, and talking points. Teaching of Psychology, 32, 173-189.

Gooblar, D. (2015, April 29). Ending at the start. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://chroniclevitae.com/news/986-ending-at-the-start

Krohn, K. R., Foster, L. N., McCleary, D. F., Aspiranti, K. B., Nalls, M. L., Quillivan, C. C., … & Williams, R. L. (2011). Reliability of students’ self-recorded participation in class discussion. Teaching of Psychology, 38, 43-45.

Lang, J. M. (2016). Small teaching: Everyday lessons from the science of learning. San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Norcross, J. C., Slotterback, C. S., & Krebs, P. M. (2001). Senior advice: Graduating seniors write to psychology freshmen. Teaching of Psychology, 28, 27-29.

Nunn, C. E. (1996). Discussion in the college classroom: Triangulating observational and survey results. Journal of Higher Education, 67, 243-266.

Svinicki, M., & McKeachie, W. J. (2011). McKeachie’s teaching tips: Strategies, research, and theory for college and university teachers (13th ed). Belmont, CA: Wadsworth.

West, J. (2018). Raising the quality of discussion by scaffolding students’ reading. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education, 30, 146-160.

Giving Psychology Away: Teaching Students to Communicate with the Public

(Past member) — Sun, 03 Feb 2019 15:25:11 GMT

Judith Danovitch (University of Louisville)

As an educator and a researcher, one of my primary goals is to enable my students to apply psychological findings to their daily lives. To this end, I encourage my students to share what they have learned in my child development courses with others, but I also worry about them being able to do so accurately and comprehensibly. The last thing I want is for my students to contribute to the pervasive misconceptions people have about psychology (see Lilienfeld, Lynn, Ruscio, & Beyerstein, 2011). Inspired by the growing interest among psychologists in translating research for the public, and the success of innovative outreach events (e.g., the Ultimate Block Party; Grob, Schlesinger, Pace, Golinkoff, & Hirsh‐Pasek, 2017), I designed a course to teach undergraduates how to communicate with the public about psychology through a direct experience.

“Giving psychology away” is a seminar that fulfills a university capstone course requirement for Psychology majors. The course goals have students identify how psychological theories and concepts can be applied to solving real-world problems, and understand and critique how the media represents psychological concepts and findings. In the process of meeting these goals, students develop their ability to translate scholarly language into lay terms, and ultimately demonstrate their capacity to do so by teaching local children about psychology.

Course content and class sessions

The course begins with readings and discussions about the value of psychological research for promoting human welfare (Zimbardo, 2004). It then proceeds to sessions addressing the representation of psychological concepts in the media, with examples of both accurate and inaccurate representations, and how the public perceives psychological research (Lilienfeld, 2012). This includes a discussion of common misconceptions in psychology and how they originated (e.g., the Mozart effect; Bangerter & Heath, 2004). The course also covers ongoing challenges for psychological scientists, such as the “replication crisis” and reliance on WEIRD samples (e.g., Henrich, Heine, & Norenzayan, 2010). Although students have typically completed four years of coursework in psychology, they often remark that the course content is new to them.

Class sessions revolve heavily around open discussion and each session includes an activity that incorporates communication skills. One skill that students practice repeatedly is summarizing research concisely using language that a lay audience can understand. For example, after reading a research article, students must state the problem the research addresses, the solution based on the research findings, and the relevance of the study to the public using only three sentences. Students also complete activities intended to support the public’s understanding of science. For example, in a session on media representations of research, students write 3 tips for evaluating a newspaper article about a research study, and I compile the tips into a class-wide document that students can share with others. In addition, one of the primary writing assignments for the course is to compose a 250-word blog post about a research study. These posts then undergo several rounds of peer editing and are eventually published for the public on the class blog (see http://getpsychedlouisville.wordpress.com/blog/).

The Get Psyched! Outreach Event

To put their communication skills into practice, students work in pairs to develop a demonstration of a psychological concept or finding for third graders in the local community. The purpose of teaching third graders about psychology is two-fold: 1) educating children about a scientific discipline that is rarely included in elementary school curricula, yet has direct applications to children’s everyday lives, and 2) challenging students to be as clear and concise as possible. Third graders are an ideal audience because they are old enough to complete basic tasks, yet they have short attention spans and low tolerance for jargon and excessively detailed explanations. As I often tell my students: if you can explain psychology to a third grader, then you can explain it to anyone!

The first challenge for students is to identify and develop a 3-5-minute task that is engaging and comprehensible to children. Students begin by brainstorming a long list of potential topics, and then narrowing them down to a set that includes a variety of concepts while avoiding overlap (e.g., having 2 false memory demonstrations). Students are then paired into teams and assigned a topic based on their interests and they spend the majority of the semester developing the demonstration, including written and verbal explanations of the concept. Some students have presented classic introductory psychology demonstrations such as the Stroop task, and others have developed novel and creative demos of concepts ranging from spatial memory to social conformity. The demonstrations make use of common, inexpensive household materials (paper cups, index cards, blindfolds, etc.) and the only restrictions are that these should not involve consuming food, be very messy, or be excessively reliant on technology. After preparing their materials and practicing their presentations in class, the course culminates with the “Get Psyched!” event in which students share their demos.

As of Fall 2018, we have held two “Get Psyched!” events at the University of Louisville. The first event was held on a Saturday in a large space on campus. With funding from an internal grant, we printed and posted advertisements for the event around town and parents were invited to register their children in advance. The event was successful in that approximately 50 parents and children attended, and they unanimously provided positive feedback. However, there was a relatively high no-show rate and, despite our efforts to advertise in lower SES and predominantly minority communities, we found that attendees were predominantly white and from higher SES areas. Requiring college students to be available on a Saturday was also barrier for students who had family or work commitments.

The second time the course was offered, the Get Psyched! event was held on two separate school days at an elementary school close to campus that served children from predominantly low SES backgrounds. Students set up their demonstrations in the school gym and third grade classes were invited to attend with their teachers. Children were divided into groups of 3 or 4 and circulated through the demonstrations. Every 8 minutes they rotated from one station to the next, and completed all 7 demonstrations by the end of the hour.

At the beginning of each event, each child received a “lab notebook” (made of 4 sheets of standard paper, printed on both sides and stapled in the center). Each page in the notebook corresponded to one of the demonstrations and included three sections: 1) “what is the task?,” followed by a preprinted description of the activity, 2) “what happened?,” with space to enter data or mark responses, and 3) “what does this show?,” followed by a blank space. During the demonstration, students explained to the children what they would be doing, and supported them in recording their data (e.g., how many seconds it took to name the colors of each list of words). The students then discussed the results with the children (e.g., “you were slower at naming the colors when they didn’t match the words”), explained the concept underlying the demonstration (e.g., “this happened because you read the words automatically and your brain had to work harder when the color and the word did not match”), and, most importantly, gave an example of how the concept was applicable to the children’s daily lives (e.g., “when you have practiced something many times, it becomes automatic.”) Children were also given an opportunity to ask questions about the demonstration. After completing each demonstration, children received a child-friendly written description of the concept and its relevance to daily life printed on a large mailing label that they were to stick in the “what does this show?” section of their lab notebook. Thus, by the end of the hour, children not only heard and discussed the explanations of each demo with the students, but they also had a complete notebook to take home and share with their families. Additional resources for parents about psychological concepts including the class blog website, were printed on the back page of the lab notebook as well.

Feedback

Anonymous evaluations from parents and children who participated in the Get Psyched! events were universally positive. In their evaluations, children were asked to list their favorite and least favorite activity and one new thing they learned. Following each event, students reviewed the feedback from attendees and wrote a reflection paper about their experience. In these papers, students frequently remarked on how challenging they found the presentations and how communicating psychology to the public was more difficult than they expected. Despite the challenges, students indicated that this course was the first time they had to apply their psychological training outside of the classroom, and that the experience was educational and useful. As the instructor, I have found that teaching this course has helped me develop my own communication skills as well and doing so has been a uniquely enjoyable and rewarding experience.

Author’s note

In the spirit of giving psychology away, the materials for Giving Psychology Away and the Get Psyched! Events can be accessed here: https://drive.google.com/open?id=1SCcGIvNclmVixEGFrD-54ao5KjPLpl21

References

Bangerter, A., & Heath, C. (2004). The Mozart effect: Tracking the evolution of a scientific legend. British Journal of Social Psychology, 43, 605-623.

Henrich, J., Heine, S. J., & Norenzayan, A. (2010). Most people are not WEIRD. Nature, 466, 29.

Grob, R., Schlesinger, M., Pace, A., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh‐Pasek, K. (2017). Playing with ideas: Evaluating the Impact of the ultimate block party, a collective experiential intervention to enrich perceptions of play. Child Development, 88, 1419-1434.

Lilienfeld, S. O. (2012). Public skepticism of psychology: why many people perceive the study of human behavior as unscientific. American Psychologist, 67(2), 111.

Lilienfeld, S. O., Lynn, S. J., Ruscio, J., & Beyerstein, B. L. (2011). 50 great myths of popular psychology: Shattering widespread misconceptions about human behavior. John Wiley & Sons.

Zimbardo, P. G. (2004). Does psychology make a significant difference in our lives? American Psychologist, 59, 339-351. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.59.5.339

Making Operational Definitions Come Alive with Aggression

(Past member) — Wed, 02 Jan 2019 22:54:17 GMT

Meredith E. Kneavel (LaSalle University), Joshua D. Fetterman (Chestnut Hill College), Ian R. Sharp (Chestnut Hill College)

Psychology is unique among the sciences because much psychological subject matter cannot be directly observed. Psychologists often define “invisible” constructs, like emotion or cognition, in terms of observable, measurable, and agreed upon criteria. These operational definitions allow psychologists to “see the invisible” and keep psychological theories testable and falsifiable. Because of this, operational definitions are foundational methodological concepts for the field of psychology and are featured prominently in various psychology courses. Unfortunately, students often struggle to grasp the nature and importance of operational definitions and sometime find discussion of this topic dry and boring. In order to combat this, we suggest a classroom activity that demonstrates the importance of rigorous operational definitions and can also be tied to several different psychological concepts that capture student’s attention. This activity illustrates the necessity of operational definitions to students, while also engaging them in broader psychological content that is, perhaps, more reflective of their motivation for enrolling in the course. It also offers a rare opportunity to watch cartoons during class, which students (and their teachers) may appreciate.

The Demonstration

The purpose of this demonstration is to illustrate the importance of operational definitions for behaviors and constructs in psychological research. It has been recognized that exact operational definitions of psychological concepts can be difficult (see Marx, 2010) which is the point of the exercise discussed here. The overall demonstration takes approximately twenty minutes and utilizes a Looney Tunes clip. Any clip depicting physically aggressive behavior will be sufficient though we have used Rabbit Season, Duck Season Trilogy in the past. Instructions to students consist only of ‘count the number of aggressive acts that you observe.’ And no definition of “aggressive act” is provided. The video is a little less than five minutes, and, at the end, the instructor asks students to share how many aggressive acts they recorded.

After the exercise, the instructor should gather the aggression scores and lead a discussion of how students defined aggression. It is important to record the aggression scores (mostly the lowest and highest in the range) for later in the demonstration. We recommend recording the number of aggressive acts from each student in an Excel spreadsheet, where the mean and standard deviation can be quickly calculated. If anonymity is preferred, Poll Everywhere or similar tools allow students to submit their ratings via cell phone and have the results projected to the class. Poll Everywhere can be programmed to create automatic bar graphs to illustrate the range of responses.

Following the sharing of the number of aggressive acts observed, the instructor can facilitate a discussion addressing why students recorded different scores which often leads to a discussion of how and why aggression was viewed differently. For instance, there may be a gender difference in the conceptualization of aggression. This can lead to a discussion of how researchers may operationalize aggression as physical, nonphysical or relational (Crick & Grotpeter, 1995). Following this discussion, the class can then come to a consensus about what aggression is and how it can be operationalized. At this point, it is helpful to go back to the video and ask whether certain acts are considered aggression or not. This helps to refine the class’ operational definition and can start a conversation about inter-rater reliability.

Following the agreed upon class definition of aggression, the instructor can then re-show the video and instruct the class to ‘count the number of aggressive acts observed’. The instructor can run a comparison of the ranges or standard deviations for the two sets of numbers to illustrate the spread in scores between the first trial and the second trial. Typically, after the class has agreed upon an operational definition, the range of scores is much smaller with students generally agreeing on about fifteen to twenty acts of aggression. If there are any outliers, this can lead to a very interesting discussion as it usually means that a student may have had a sudden insight about aggression that wasn’t shared in the original formulation of the definition. Illustrating the change in the range of scores highlights the importance of having an agreed upon operational definition.

This technique is primarily valuable in demonstrating the concept of operational definitions but has secondary uses in reinforcing or illustrating concepts such as gender differences in perceptions of aggression, measures of dispersion (range and standard deviation), inter-rater reliability, and difficulties in assessment and observational research. Because class time is valuable, this short activity is particularly useful as it allows the flexibility to incorporate multiple concepts into one demonstration.

Gender Differences Adaptation

Most research indicates that males are more physically and verbally aggressive than females (Archer, 2004; Card, Stucky, Sawalani, & Little, 2008; Hyde, 1984). Females tend to exhibit more relational aggression (Card et al., 2008; Ostrov & Keating, 2004), especially during the teenage years (Archer, 2004). However, overall gender difference in relational aggression is small and seems to depend on data collection methods (Archer, 2004; Card et al., 2008; Eagly & Steffen, 1986). Nonetheless, if the clip primarily depicts physical aggression (as most cartoons do), gender differences in the number of aggressive acts that students record should appear. Gender differences can be illustrated by having students count aggressive acts (as described above), or by having students make Likert scale ratings of the aggressiveness of characters or both. It is possible that gender differences may be found using one measurement technique but not the other. Furthermore, this demonstration could be modified to focus specifically on gender differences in aggression by showing two clips, one that depicts physical aggression and one the depicts relational aggression. and discuss the gender disparity.

Misinformation Effect Adaptation

Research indicates that human memory is quite fallible (Chan, Jones, Jamieson, & Albarracin, 2017; Loftus, 2005; Loftus & Pickrell, 1995), particularly where eyewitness testimony is concerned (Wells & Olson, 2003). Indeed, faulty eyewitness testimony is partly responsible for the distressingly high number of wrongfully convicted individuals who are later exonerated through the use of DNA evidence (Wells & Olson, 2003). Typically, in research on false memories, individuals are shown a video and later given incorrect information or asked leading questions about what they saw. Often people will erroneously recall the incorrect information as having come from the video (Loftus, Miller, & Burns, 1978), or reconstruct their memories of the video to be more consistent with the leading questions (Loftus & Palmer, 1974). These flaws in memory can be discussed in the context of the operational definitions activity described above. If individuals cannot agree on what they saw in the first place, it is not possible for their assessments to be accurate (in the same way that reliability is a prerequisite for validity). After making counts of the number of aggressive acts that students saw in the cartoon, half of the class could be asked to make a rating of how aggressively the individuals “fought” during the video, while the other half could be asked to make a rating of how aggressively the individuals “interacted” during the video (students should be unaware that the class has been asked two different questions until after the demonstration has concluded). Those who read the word “fought” should make higher ratings of aggressiveness due to the leading nature of the question even though all members of the class will have seen the same video.

Clinical Applications Adaptation

Inter-rater reliability is of significant importance in a variety of clinical applications. For example, evidence of poor inter-rater reliability in the administration of symptom severity outcome scales has led to negative or failed clinical trials where the treatment otherwise would have outperformed a placebo (Kobak, Feiger, & Lipsitz, 2005). In our course on Psychological Assessment, we use videos streamed from the Internet demonstrating clinician-administered, semi-structured diagnostic and severity scales (e.g., the Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale [MADRS]). In one demonstration, students are provided with the Structured Interview Guide for the MADRS [SIGMA] and asked to rate the ten items. Once the students have rated the ten items, scores are collected and an intra-class correlation coefficient (ICCs) generated. Then each item is reviewed with a discussion of discrepancies in scoring and the use of the instructor’s scores as a gold standard. This scale is particularly useful in discussing interrater reliability because the ten items requires the rater to consider the intensity, frequency, and duration of multiple constructs of depressive symptoms. Each of the ten items are rated from 0-6 and untrained undergraduate students tend to demonstrate a large range of scores within each of the items. The ten items are then discussed, and students are asked to explain how they arrived at their scores, often providing fruitful examples of why ratings differed. This is also an opportunity for students to discuss the administration of the scale and illustrate various important interviewing techniques (e.g., avoiding leading questions, clarifying ambiguous information). The cartoon video can be used in advance of the introduction of the clinical scale as a means of illustrating the importance of operation definitions. The video can be used to reinforce concepts of interrater reliability by systematically reviewing acts of ‘aggression’. The class can then go back through the video together and discuss the specific acts until there is agreement between raters.

The adaptability and utility of the demonstration spans multiple courses and can be molded to fit the number, type and level of student. The demonstration can be utilized in a research methods course or in a content specific course, such as a social psychology.

References

Archer, J. (2004). Sex differences in aggression in real-world settings: A meta-analytic review. Review of General Psychology, 8, 291-322. DOI: 10.1037/1089-2680.8.4.291

Chan, M. S., Jones, C. R., Jamieson, K. H., & Albarracin, D. (2017). Debunking: A meta-analysis of the psychological efficacy of messages countering misinformation. Psychological Science, 28, 1531-1546. DOI: doi.org/10.1177/0956797617714579

Crick, N. R., & Grotpeter, J. K. (1995). Relational aggression, gender, and social-psychological adjustment. Child Development, 66 (3), 710-722. doi.org/10.2307/1131945

Eagley, A. H., Steffen, V. J. (1986). Gender and aggressive behavior: A meta-analytic review of the social psychological literature. Psychological Bulletin, 100, 309-330.

Kobak, K. A., Brown, B., Sharp, I., Levy-Mack, H., Wells, K., Okum, F., & Williams, J. B. W. (2009). Sources of unreliability in depression ratings. Journal of Clinical Psychopharmacology, 29, 82-85. DOI:10.1097/JCP.0b013e318192e4d7

Kobak, K. A., Feiger, A. D., & Lipsitz, J. D. (2005). Interview quality and signal detection in clinical trials. American Journal of Psychiatry, 162(3), 628-628. doi:10.1176/appi.ajp.162.3.628

Hyde, J. S. (1984). How large are gender differences in aggression? A developmental meta-analysis. Developmental Psychology, 20, 722-736.

Loftus, E. F. (2005). Planting misinformation in the human mind: A 30-year investigation of the malleability of memory. Learning and Memory, 12, 361-366.

Loftus, E. F., Miller, D. G., & Burns, H. J. (1978). Semantic integration of verbal information into a visual memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Human Learning and Memory, 4, 19-31.

Loftus, E. F., & Palmer, J. C. (1974). Reconstruction of automobile destruction: An example of the interaction between language and memory. Journal of Verbal Learning and Verbal Behavior, 13, 585-589. DOI: doi.org/10.1016/S0022-5371(74)80011-3

Loftus, E. F., & Pickrell, J. E. (1995). The formation of false memories. Psychiatric Annals, 25, 720-725

Marx, M.H. (2010). Operational Definition In Weiner, I.B. Y Craighead, W. E. (Eds.), The Corsini Encyclopedia of Psychology (p. 1129). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

Ostrov, J. M., & Keating, C. F. (2004). Gender differences in preschool aggression during free play and structured interactions: An observational study. Social Development, 13, 255-277.

Wells, G. L., & Olson, E. A. (2003). Eyewitness testimony. Annual Review of Psychology, 54, 277-295. DOI: 10.1146/annurev.psych.54.101601.145028

The Mystery of Translation

(Past member) — Mon, 03 Dec 2018 18:33:28 GMT

Chris Hakala (Springfield College)

For the past several years, I have had the fortune of serving both as a classroom instructor of psychology and the director of a teaching center. Prior to this, I was a faculty member, and have taught many, many courses over the length of my career. During all this time, I have attended many conferences, talks, workshops, etc. all dedicated to teaching. For many of those events, I came away feeling like much of what was discussed or described about effective teaching was really couched in the world of psychology. Faculty were using principles of psychology to help students learn effectively, or they were talking about “novel” approaches to teaching that, according to much of the data, would in fact, hinder effective learning. What I didn’t hear much about, at least up to that point, was about translational research that tried to systematically use what we know about how students learn to impact our basic classroom practice.

Much of that has changed over the last 20 years, as more and more researchers have begun to systematically examine how we can implement psychological principles into the classroom. Much of the work has come out of the labs from Washington University under the direction of Roediger, but there are many, many people who have contributed to this conversation (e.g., Benassi, Overson, & Hakala, 2014; Brown, McDaniel, & Roeiger, 2014; Lang, 2016; McDaniel, Agarwal, Huelser, McDermott, & Roediger III, 2011; Sana, Fenesi, & Kim, 2011; Whiffen & Karpicke, 2017). In many of these conversations, the discussion has centered on what the faculty member can do to improve the memory and learning of students. For example, much of the work on retrieval enhanced learning suggests that by creating conditions under which students are required to repeatedly retrieve information, learning should improve. There is clear evidence that this, in fact, works. When students are required to retrieve information, there are overwhelming positive benefits for those students (see Karpicke, 2012). If, for example, a faculty member gives quizzes to students each class, to test knowledge acquired in a previous class, students are more likely to remember that information when they are required to retrieve it for a cumulative exam. This, alone, is great information for students, and the kind of strategies that should lead to extensive quizzing among faculty to increase learning.

There are other findings that are also supported by the data. One is that if you interleave (Blasiman, 2017), you are more likely to retain information over a longer period of time. The idea of interleaving helps students by teaching one set of concepts, switching to another set of concepts, and then returning to the original concept. When done across classes, there is strong evidence that students benefit from the second exposure to the content under different conditions.

Given the increased evidence of utilizing such concepts in the classroom to improve student learning, it stands to reason that teaching is getting better, students are learning and are able to transfer that knowledge to other contexts and domains. In short, the student experience should be one that is seamless, integrated, and more complete than it has ever been.

Sadly, this is not the case. One of the biggest problems with teaching is that we often know a lot about one thing but do things differently when required to act. For example, a classic psychology study suggests that organisms do better when reinforcement is used rather than punishment. It’s taught in psychology courses around the country, and it’s a concept that is clearly understood by anyone who has even a passing knowledge of basic psychological principles. However, when faced with a behavior that is not a desired one, people often resort to punishing that behavior rather than using the strategy that has been shown to be more effective under many conditions.

Why do we, as faculty, do the same thing. That is, given all that we know that works in the classroom, why do faculty still resort to teaching in a manner that has been shown to not increase student learning and to not help students transfer knowledge from one context to another?

This straw-man argument is one that is bandied about at many a teaching conference, and often by psychologists, who are stunned that their less informed colleagues are not using all that we know about human behavior to better education our college students. The typical comments are similar to, “well, we know that lecturing doesn’t work. Why do we still do it?” or “Why don’t these students read what we tell them to read”, or “It’s not my responsibility to hold my students’ hands”.

The argument suggests that learning is straightforward and that if we do these things, students will learn, our colleges and universities will improve, and life will be better. All we need to do is read Small Teaching or Make it Stick and do what they tell us, and we will now be the best model teachers that we can be, and our students will be amazing. Oh, were it that simple.

As psychologists, we know that behavior is complicated. I’d like to add to that, from a pedagogical standpoint, that learning is messy and teaching is not only idiosyncratic, but also deeply personal. To say that all we need to do is X to improve teaching is to underestimate all that we know about human behavior. It’s the equivalent of saying, “if you eat green beans, you will live to 100”. Life, like learning, is messy, with all sorts of variables that can impact any given situation. To maximize any given situation, one needs to be flexible, adaptable, aware of what is effective, and, understanding of the role of uncontrollable factors. In the scenario about green beans, consider that one might take that to mean that to live a long life, one needs to eat well. That’s true, to some extent, but there are countless counterexamples. One needs many different factors to coalesce for a long life. Eating well is one, but it is neither necessary nor sufficient for a long life. We have SOME control over factors that impact these very important landmarks in our world, but to think that we have complete control over our life span is to be, I would argue, a bit delusional.

I would say the same about teaching and learning. The idea that there is one ideal teaching strategy or one ideal teaching approach that would work for all students is folly. Rather, I would argue, similar to most of the things we face in life, an understanding of teaching and learning requires us to know several things:

1. How humans learn
2. How we can impact how our students learn
3. How we can do that in our classroom given
a. Who we are
b. Who are students are
4. How that translates to classroom activities that are consistent with our discipline
5. How that is received by students in our particular institutions’ culture

To ignore this is to pretend that all students come to us with the same preparation, all faculty enter the class with the same sets of skills to teach, and all of us teach at institutions that have nearly identical campus cultures. In short, this doesn’t really seem to make a lot of sense.

I would like to argue that we should recognize that teaching and learning are personal

tasks and that to really be effective as instructors, we need to recognize:

1. Our strengths and weaknesses in presenting course material
2. Our students’ strengths and weaknesses
3. Our content and what it lends itself to
4. Our institution’s culture
5. How what we know about learning can be crafted to fit into these above mentioned issues.

Thus, an effective classroom is one that makes use of what we know about how students learn, but it is one that is crafted to best meet the needs of our students in the context of what works within the course, the institution and the instructors’ skill set.

As psychologists, we have a good understanding of human behavior. And, given that knowledge, we should apply it to any interactions we have with other humans. In our research, we carefully weigh variables, look for confounds and other factors that will impact our results. We need to consider these exact attributes when we design our courses and plan our class sessions.

Be aware of how students learn, read the work by others, and ADAPT it to your context, to your classes, to your teaching and to your students. Only you, as the instructor, know what strategies would fit in your courses. Consult with your teaching center, or others on campus that know about the literature. However, when translating that into your classes, consult with your experience, your expertise, and your own knowledge to craft a classroom experience that maximizes learning for your students and does so in a way that is authentic, effective, genuine and productive.

References

Benassi, V. A., Overson, C. E., & Hakala, C. M. (2014). Applying science of learning in education: Infusing psychological science into the curriculum. Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology web site: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/asle2014/index.php

Blasiman, R. N., (2017). Distributed concept reviews improve exam performance. Teaching of Psychology, 44 (1), 46-50.

Brown, P. C., McDaniel, M., & Roediger, H. (2014). Make it stick : the science of successful learning. Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Karpicke, J. D. (2012). Retrieval-based learning: Active retrieval promotes meaningful learning. Current Directions in Psychological Science, 21, 157-163.

Lang, J. (2016). Small Teaching: Everyday Lessons from the Science of Learning. New York: Jossey-Bass.

McDaniel, M. A., Agarwal, P. K., Huelser, B. J., McDermott, K. B., & Roediger III, H. L. (2011). Test-enhanced learning in a middle school science classroom: The effects of quiz frequency and placement. Journal of Educational Psychology, 103(2), 399.

Sana, F., Fenesi, B, & Kim, J.A. (2011). A case study of the introductory psychology blended learning model at McMaster University. The Canadian Journal for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning 2(1), 6.

Whiffen, J. W., & Karpicke, J. D. (2017). The role of episodic context in retrieval practice effects. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 43, 1036-1046.

Sneaky Pedagogy: How to Utilize Students’ implicit Knowledge and Make Psychology Real

(Past member) — Thu, 01 Nov 2018 21:43:43 GMT

Bonnie Laster (Wingate University)

What immediately comes to mind when one considers psychology? Dull? Dry and boring theory? Students commonly regard general psychology as a tedious Gen Ed obligation; another box to tick on the graduation checklist. Though instructors may occasionally glean satisfaction from the indiscriminate spark lit in a previously unmotivated student, I would venture to guess most of us are challenged to effectively disseminate largely fundamental and theoretical content to an assembly comprised of underclassman, the majority of whom are non-psychology majors. But, here’s thing: this content, particularly its practical application, is important. Psychological inquiry is essential in examining the why and how of human behavior and cognition, regardless of a students’ intended field. Students may remember foundations of other fields examined during their undergraduate years, but they can actually use psychology in any occupation across any discipline at any time. General psychology can teach students how to understand human behavior, including their own; perceptibly, an invaluable skill. Moreover, psychology is actually pretty interesting, as well as multifaceted. So, why then, do students often view it as a wearisome necessity? Perhaps, it’s because of us.

It is extraordinarily easy for faculty to fall into the trap of “textbook teaching”. Meaning, we instruct in a traditional lecture-dense format in a standard “start with chapter 1” approach. Although a traditional approach has its merits, it may essentially undermine the wealth of knowledge residing undeveloped and untapped within the audience itself. Students come to college with an enormous amount of personal experience in human behavior and cognition. Perhaps you have witnessed the “Aha!” or “So, that’s why I do that!” moment as students connect their experience of human behavior with psychological theory. Psychology holds the unique benefit of relating to everyone and everything. Though not necessarily intuitively, psychology examines behavior and cognition we have all experienced and will continue to experience in our distinct journeys. As instructors, we may benefit greatly from exploring this implicit knowledge and expanding upon it.

Research has long suggested students learn best by not only acquiring knowledge, but by organizing it meaningfully (Chi, Glaser, & Farr, 1988). As such, from day one in my classes, I try to integrate students’ own intimate experience with psychological concepts. Doing so supports personally meaningful interactions for students and offers them a familiar anchor as we expand the concept beyond their tangible experience. Overwhelmingly, the best resource I have found to teach foundational content is the actual student. Students come pre-equipped with a certain level of fundamental understanding of psychology. Tapping into this understanding via what I have termed, an inverted constructivist curriculum (IvC), can be an effective way to facilitate students’ awareness of their prevailing knowledge, by allowing them to explore what they know, but don’t explicitly know that they know.

Think about personal examples students may have offered in your classes. Most students can relate to much of what we’re instructing. For example, what student hasn’t experienced operant conditioning or social loafing? Who hasn’t experienced Fight or Flight or had the occasional struggle with memory retrieval during an exam? We should capitalize on this experience. In the IvC approach, two main concepts are inverted: topics and execution. That is, while historical concepts and classic theory may seem a logical starting place for many (as evidenced by the majority of general psychology textbooks), I begin with students’ understanding of themselves through examination of personality and social psychology. I also invert execution, allowing students to discuss their experiential familiarity of concepts before connecting them to definitions.

Topics

Although Chapter 1 may be an intuitive place to start in an introductory course, to capture the essence of one’s understanding of self (and to simultaneously capture student interest), I have found personality can serve as an effective starting point. Personality is typically viewed with interest by most students, and starting here holds the additional benefit of student self-analysis. By participating in common personality measurements such as the Big 5 Factor Inventory or Gray’s Reinforcement Sensitivity Theory, students may understand their own perspectives and nuances more clearly, while also providing insight into classroom behavior (e.g. from Gray’s theory (1970) we can predict students high in BAS (behavioral activation system) will be more likely to participate in class discussions than students higher in BIS (behavioral inhibition system). Social psychology also tends to be popular with students. Online media provides real-world scenarios illustrating such concepts as group think or group polarization. Confirmation bias can help explain why students’ parents (or students themselves) are drawn to a particular media outlet, to the exclusion of all others. Learning is another area students can relate well to, particularly when discussing welcomed ideas (yes, you should sleep more in college to help consolidation to LTM!). I have found that rather than starting with historical underpinnings, classic theory or early pioneers in the field, capturing the students’ interest from day one with more relatable concepts can help sustain attention when the “drier” ones are considered. I do cover history and systems, methodology, etc., but introduce them after we explore the more relatable areas of psychology.

Execution

Beyond topic, I also invert execution, asking students to first consider their existing experience within relevant parameters. I offer definitions and explanations after the concept has been explored within students’ experiential understanding. For example, a typical introduction of topic may start off with something as nonchalant as, “how did you learn to ride a bike?” to segue into scaffolding or, “have you ever studied diligently, then blanked while taking a test?” to acquaint students with memory. Although some topics within psychology don’t necessarily lend themselves to the IvC approach (let’s hope not many students can relate to phrenology), the majority of concepts can. After posing the guiding question(s), my role is to then observe while students talk amongst themselves, sharing their various experiences. With smaller classes, I encourage small groups of students, while students in larger lectures can pair and share with immediate neighbors. After an appropriate amount of time (less than 5 minutes, typically around 2-3) I reassemble the students to share with the larger group and examine the concept more didactically through traditional Powerpoint or outline lecture. This technique allows students to first explore their own knowledge and experience, while simultaneously constructing meaning with peers (a nod to both Piagetian and Vygostskian theories). I have found that with personal and shared experience in mind, students can then assimilate empirical definitions and explanations more readily and with greater meaning. I have also found that, surprisingly, this technique really doesn’t take any extra time throughout the semester; we still cover all of the topics necessary to cover throughout the semester. In fact, we sometimes run ahead of schedule, since students are able to internalize the concepts more quickly. The strongest advantage of the IvC is its covert nature. By the time the more refined aspects of the topic at hand are explored, students have already created a deeper meaning with it, through consideration of their existing experience, as well as the experience of their peers. And, truthfully, students also enjoy the opportunity to talk about themselves.

Considerations

Though I view the IvC as a logical and pragmatic approach, to be clear, I am by no means intending to imply that psychology is solely “common sense” and by considering their own experience students may gain a thorough and sophisticated understanding of psychological theory. Just because students can relate personal experience to concepts does not negate the scientific nature of the discipline. It is also not a “blow off” approach, which over-simplifies concepts or lacks proper assessment. I include rigorous student evaluation via examinations, research papers and group projects. Although it can be a fun and personal way to explore psychology, with the IvC, traditional accountability it still maintained. What about the reluctant student; the one who doesn’t wish to share their experience or participate in group activity? I always allow students to work independently if desired, by jotting down their own experiences without pairing up, considering theories and concepts independently, or to brainstorm real-world examples from media or fiction. What do students think about the IvC? When incorporating it, I tend to see greater class attendance and engagement, as well as higher academic achievement. Student feedback, via end of semester surveys and assessments, reflects positive experience for most students. Students generally like the curriculum, citing personal and peer real-world examples as its particular strength. Previous students occasionally even get back in touch with me to share how this approach has helped them retain psychological concepts in their various pursuits.

Worth considering, however, are limitations within the IvC. It is not necessarily a one size fits all; not every class may benefit from its unique structure. Large lecture classes which have the propensity for unruliness may not be suitable for the approach, as students may take advantage of too much freedom and talk time. Some departments require a standardized instruction with specific topics examined at explicit points during the semester, leaving little wiggle room to potentially incorporate student participation. Ultimately, successful IvC incorporation depends upon the students themselves. Students must be willing to share with one another to make the approach work. Although I try to incorporate the approach in most of my classes, I’ve found some groups simply aren’t as cohesive as others, or may be unenthusiastic to share. I typically try to start off with the curriculum, tweaking for more or less reflection, and more or less lecture as necessitated by the group.

To summarize, the IvC incorporates the following points: By tapping into their inherent and experiential familiarity of concepts, students themselves are utilized at the creators of fundamental knowledge. Students learn to associate their experience with psychological foundations. As a result, students are able to organize concepts in a personally meaningful way, which in turn promotes interest and retention. Although the IvC incorporates didactic instruction, its active learning is paramount to the curriculum as students personally and socially construct meaning. I’ve found great success with this approach. I hope you will too.

References

Chi, M.T.H., Glaser, R., & Farr, M. (1988). The nature of expertise. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Gray, J. (1970). The psychophysiological basis of introversion-extraversion. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 8, 249-266.

Professional Development through Reflective Student ePortfolios

(Past member) — Mon, 01 Oct 2018 18:34:18 GMT

Robert R. Bubb, Jamie Sailors, Sharon Wilbanks, Margaret Vollenweider, Emily Cumbie, & Hannah Ferry (Auburn University)

Indicators of student success at colleges and universities take many forms (Suskie, 2009). One indicator is the ability to produce employable graduates (Hoachlander, Sikora, & Horn, 2003). Students’ successful marketing of their skills, experiences, and knowledge can influence employment opportunities following graduation (Floyd & Gordon, 1998). A national survey found that 80% of employers valued an electronic portfolio that summarizes and demonstrates applicants’ key skills and knowledge (e.g., teamwork, oral and written communication, critical thinking) when determining whom to hire (AACU, 2015). The ePortfolio Project at Auburn University is a campus-wide initiative that encourages students to develop a personal website that highlights students’ skills, experiences, and knowledge through reflective contextualization of artifacts. ePortfolios provide a modern, 21^st century context for students to communicate with a professional audience; ePortfolios are more professional than Facebook and more personal than LinkedIn. The ePortfolio initiative at Auburn University is implemented at the department level. The following essay highlights the Human Development and Family Studies Department (HDFS) promotional efforts to implement an ePortfolio within its major that will be useful for the implementation of ePortfolios at other universities, departments, and courses.

Learning Objectives

HDFS majors complete a basic ePortfolio as an assignment in a required professional development and ethics course. This initial ePortfolio draft includes an About Me page, a resume, at least one professional image of the student, a contact page, and one artifact. The artifact reflects a skill, experience, or knowledge gained as part of the course. As students traverse the major curriculum, faculty in other courses assign specific assignments such as written papers, course reflections, presentations, and field experiences that can be used as artifacts. Prior to graduation, the ePortfolio is reviewed in the capstone internship course during the students’ last semester.

From implementation to finalization of the ePortfolio, students meet the following learning objectives:

· Articulate a professional philosophy that identifies and supports professional goals;
· Engage in self-reflection to identify personal strengths and areas for improvement;
· Think critically about how accomplishments relate to career goals;
· Write effectively to convey a clear message to a professional audience;
· Apply classroom knowledge to professional practice; and
· Demonstrate technical competency in basic web design, visual literacy, and presentation.

Websites

Auburn University supports four free website platforms that students use to create ePortfolios (i.e., Wix, Weebly, Wordpress, Googlesites). Each website has different strengths and weaknesses; however, Wix, Weebly, and Wordpress rate similarly on ease of use, customization, storage, user support, and administrative settings. Anecdotally, students prefer Wix or Weebly. These two platforms provide clear descriptions and intuitive customization tools. A comparison among the platforms is located at the following link: http://wp.auburn.edu/writing/wp-content/uploads/Choose-A-Platform-8-17.pdf

About Me Page

A basic ePorfolio commences with the About Me page. The About Me page introduces the student, explains her or his professional goals, and articulates the purpose of the ePortfolio. The page clearly identifies the students’ post-graduation goals and centers on an overall theme that connects the student’s skills, experiences, and knowledge to her or his professional goals such as major, interests, and future plans. Essentially, the page is similar to the job interview question, “Tell me about yourself,” and emphasizes the professional, rather than the personal, aspects of the student. Any personal information or stories should directly support professional goals. The About Me page also includes navigational links to content pages that contain evidence of the student’s skills, experience, and knowledge.

Content Pages

An ePortfolio includes several content pages that can focus creatively on several themes; however, the most common pages center on professional, volunteer, study abroad, and service experiences. Content pages about professional experiences highlight academic coursework, internships, employment, study abroad, and research and teaching experiences related to career goals. Pages on volunteer experiences and service focus on work with charities and memberships to professional organizations that relate to the student’s career goals. Pages on interests and honors discuss awards and hobbies that demonstrate professionally relevant skills, abilities, and knowledge.

Each content page contains artifacts. Artifacts serve as evidence and communicate to a professional audience the skills and knowledge students learn from their college experience. Artifacts may include text, images, videos, PowerPoint presentations, course assignments, class presentations and papers, and conference presentations. Each artifact is contextualized through reflective writing. Reflection provides a brief explanation of how each artifact relates to the student’s goals, to other experiences, and to the skills needed for successful employment or graduate studies. The written text informs both what the artifact is (what?), why it matters (so what?), and how the experience informs the future (now what?).

Quality Assurance

A successful ePortfolio requires a high standard of quality. Once published online, the ePortfolio is available to anyone with Internet access. A poorly created product may reduce rather than improve a student’s chances to gain meaningful employment or acceptance to a graduate program. Students are encouraged to release their ePortfolio to a professional audience only once it meets a professional standard. The university and the HDFS department provide several resources to assist students in producing a quality product.

The Miller Writing Center at Auburn University provides online and in-person resources. Online resources include tips on identifying artifacts, choosing a theme, learning how to write reflectively, understanding ethical literacy, and ensuring that essential criteria have been met before publishing. Examples of ePortfolios are also available. In-person resources include appointments with writing tutors and ePortfolio workshops. In addition to student resources, the Writing Center also provides resources for faculty who wish to incorporate an ePortfolio as part of their course. Faculty resources include introductory materials, peer support from faculty across campus, internal grants to promote ePortfolios, and rubrics for assessment. The following link contains resources for implementing an ePortfolio: http://wp.auburn.edu/writing/eportfolio-project/

The HDFS department also developed a rubric and support materials to encourage ePortfolio quality at the professional level. The Roadmap helps students identify and develop potential artifacts that are presented as required assignments in HDFS courses. The Roadmap is introduced to all incoming freshman interested in the HDFS major and encourages critical thinking through reflection as a means to provide context for how a particular artifact applies to a student’s career goals. The following link contains the HDFS roadmap: http://humsci.auburn.edu/hdfs/files/HDFS_ePortfolio_road_map.pdf

In addition to the roadmap, both the introductory professional development and ethics course and the final internship capstone course implement a rubric that informs students about the expected outcomes. To promote clear communication about these outcomes to both students and faculty, a rubric support document defines the evaluated facets included in the rubric. The following link contains the rubric support document: http://humsci.auburn.edu/hdfs/files/HDFS_ePortfolio_rubric_definitions.pdf

The HDFS rubric went through multiple revisions and the department tested it prior to implementation. The final rubric resulted in a good inter-rater reliability coefficient when tested on student ePortfolios available online, ICC (3, 6) = 0.88. The rubric consists of 18 items across four domains: effective communication, critical thinking through reflection, technical competency, and visual literacy. Each item is rated on a six-point scale where two points represent each of three levels of quality: novice, developing, and professional. Student ePortfolios are expected to be rated at the developing level by the end of the professional development and ethics course. By the internship course and prior to public release, student ePortfolios are expected to be rated at the professional level. The following link contains the rubric: https://drive.google.com/file/d/0BwX2mM8EONjaR185Uy1Bb3NnOWs/view?usp=sharing

Finally, the HDFS department offers two workshops per semester and an ePortfolio departmental award to encourage and promote ePortfolio excellence. The two workshops are held in the department computer lab and are open to all HDFS students. One workshop is targeted toward a novice audience who are in the beginning stages of an ePortfolio. The other workshop is focused on more advanced work for students who have already started an ePortfolio.

Each spring semester, the HDFS department recognizes two excellent undergraduate ePortfolios. The department awards an HDFS Undergraduate Award for ePortfolio Excellence to a sophomore-junior level student and another to a senior level student. The winning students receive recognition by the department, a ceremonial plaque, and a small monetary award for producing a quality ePortfolio.

Conclusion

A high-quality, professional ePortfolio has the potential to highlight the experiences, skills and knowledge necessary for students to be successful applicants in today’s job market or graduate programs. In addition to highlighting student qualifications, the process of creating an ePortfolio develops skills and abilities that are desirable in today’s emerging fields. Critical thinking and self-reflection are valued, adaptive qualities necessary in an ever-changing employment landscape. While effective communication, writing, and technical skills are highly sought in most professions, ePortfolios demonstrate student qualifications through the artifacts presented, reflective contextualization, and the creative process. Through this process, students are better prepared to answer questions such as, “Tell me about yourself?” in face-to-face interviews. Additionally, the personal nature of the ePortfolio provides employers and graduate program selection committees a window into the less tangible characteristics required for a good person-organizational fit. Finally, university and departmental encouragement and support can facilitate the resources necessary for students to publically release professional ePortfolios of high quality. In turn, successfully turning college graduates into employable professions—an indicator of a successful collegiate education.

References

American Association of Colleges and Universities (AACU). (2015). Falling short? College learning and career success. Washington, DC: Hart Research Associates.

Floyd, C. J., & Gordon, M. E. (1998). What skills are most important? A comparison of employer, student, and staff perceptions. Journal of Marketing Education, 20, 1303-109.

Hoachlander, G., Sikora, A. C., & Horn, L. (2003). Community college students: Goals, academic preparation, and outcomes. Washington, DC: National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education.

Suskie, L. (2009). Assessing student learning: A common sense guide. Josey-Bass: San Francisco, CA.

Creating Positive Group Work Experiences to Increase Student Persistence

(Past member) — Tue, 04 Sep 2018 00:06:27 GMT

Alice Szczepaniak (Boston University)

Robyn Johnson (Boston University)

Naamah Azoulay Jarnot (University of Southern Maine)

Changiz Mohiyeddini (Northeastern University)

Sohila Mohiyeddini (California University of Management & Sciences)

Haley Carson (Northeastern University)

Despite over 75 years of research on student persistence (Jones & Braxton, 2010), there have been few substantial gains in student persistence in recent years (Tinto, 2007). Persistence measures those students who continue to be enrolled in the university (McGrath & Burd, 2012). Low persistence rates can have a widespread impact:

· On a national level, college degree attainment has been linked to economic growth. Graduates from four-year colleges pay an average of 91% more in taxes each year than those with just high school degrees (Ma, Pender, & Welch, 2016).
· At an institutional level, student retention is used as a key performance indicator for the institution (Crosling, Heagney, & Thomas, 2009). Freshman persistence and graduation rates are among the metrics that define the quality of an academic institution (Culver, 2008).
· On an individual level, persistence is necessary for a college student to realize the social and economic benefits associated with higher education (Wolniak, Mayhew, & Engberg, 2012).

According to higher education theorist Vince Tinto’s model of college student departure, dropout from college is the result of the students’s experiences in the academic and social systems of the college. The higher the degree of integration of the student into the college’s social and academic system, the greater the student’s commitment to the specific institution and to the goal of college completion (Tinto, 1975). Terenzini and Wright (1987) found that students’ levels of academic and social integration in one year had a positive influence on their level of academic and social integration in the next year. More recently, Strauss and Volkwein (2004) established that social activities, classroom experiences, and friendships are key predictors of institutional commitment.

Based on this background information, we reasoned that student experiences that allow for both academic and social integration would increase student persistence. Thus, the objective of our study was to investigate whether positive group work experiences (Mohiyeddini, Johnson, Azoulay Jarnot, & Mohiyeddini, in preparation; Mohiyeddini, Azoulay, & Bauer, 2015) will increase students’ intention to persist.

The Study

Students were recruited at three different college campuses in London. To be included in the study, the students had to have current membership in a small mixed-gender group work of three to four students for at least one semester. While the classes were on different subjects, for each class the aim of group work was to produce a collaborative report and/or a presentation as a graded course requirement. Students participating in the study completed an initial questionnaire that included demographic and socioeconomic information, as well as a baseline measure of their intention to persist. Approximately five months after the first measurement, these students were asked to complete a follow-up questionnaire on their current intention to persist and their experiences with their group work. 232 students completed the study.

To measure group work experiences we used the Positive Group Work Inventory (PGWI) (Mohiyeddini et al., in preparation). The PGWI is made up of 24 items that measure six central factors of group work experiences:

1. Perceived respect
“We comment on each other’s performance with an appropriate tone”
2. Perceived fairness
“The workload and responsibilities were fairly distributed among us”
3. Effective commitment
“My group members were committed to our group work”
4. Perceived transparency
“The rules for our collaboration were clear”
5. Perceived support
“Other group members gave me the support that I needed to complete my part”
6. Perceived inclusion
“I had the feeling that I belonged to my group”

We measured the students’ intention to persist twice, once at the beginning of the study and again at the end of study (approximately 5 months later) with two items following Ajzen’s recommendations (1991):

1. “I intend to complete my degree at my current university”
2. “I intend to continue with my education at my current university”

Our Findings

After controlling for variables such as age, gender, and the student’s baseline intention to persist, we found that perceived respect (β = .125, p = .010) and perceived inclusion (β = .147, p = .002) were predictive of students’ intention to persist. The more students perceived respect and inclusion in their group work experience, the higher their intention to persist and complete their degree at their current academic institution. The predictive value of perceived inclusion suggests that if groups could foster a better sense of inclusion among members, that intention to persist could have an even larger impact on individual’s intention to persist, though the groups in this particular study did not do a particularly good job of fostering that kind of inclusive environment.

Our findings are in line with recent theories and research on the impact of perceived respect on teams. Perceived respect reflects that the individual feels valued by the team (Branscombe, Spears, Ellemers, & Doosje, 2002; Huo & Binning, 2008; Smith, Tyler, & Huo, 2003; Tyler & Blader, 2003). Individuals who feel respected by other team members experience higher levels of identification with the team (Sleebos, Ellemers, & de Gilder, 2007) and put more effort into achieving team goals (Tyler & Blader, 2003).

In a related vein, social identity theory (Tajfel, 1978; Tajfel & Turner, 1979) highlights that social identification processes, during which individuals tend to think of themselves in terms of their belonging to and inclusion in a social group or collective, have a crucial impact on individuals’ collaborative behaviors. Following social identity theory, our results extend these findings and may suggest that perceived inclusion in a team supports the sense of being a part of an academic institution as a larger community and therefore strengthens a student’s intention to complete their education at that institution.

Limitations

Although the current investigation advanced research on student persistence and positive group work experiences of students in several ways, there were also a number of limitations to our study. First, the study was based on self-reported data, which are affected by reappraisal of past events due to present (critical) circumstances, by impairment of memory over time, and by non-disclosure and reporting biases. Second, the questionnaire used in this study was presented in a consistent order and was not counterbalanced, which might have influenced the results and prompted order effects. Furthermore, considering the sample size, a non-random sampling method, lack of control group, and the recruitment of very few colleges, the generalizability of the findings is limited.

What to Do with this Information

Despite these limitations, our study expands our understanding of student persistence and highlights the potential impact of positive group work experiences on students. Fostering positive group work experiences could be an effective tool to improve the persistence intention of students. This can be done through:

• Workshops for faculty and staff that explain key conditions of a positive group work experience and provide tools and a framework for facilitating respect and inclusion in their class.

• Courses for students, such as first year seminars, that focus on teaching positive group work skills, particularly respect and inclusion.

References

Ajzen, I. (1991) The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50, 179–211.

Branscombe, N. R., Spears, R., Ellemers N., & Doosje, B. (2002). Intragroup and intergroup evaluation effects on group behavior. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28(6), 744–753. doi:10.1177/0146 167202289004.

Crosling, G., Heagney, M., & Thomas, L. (2009). Improving student retention in higher education. Australian Universities’ Review, 51(2), 9-18.

Culver, T. (2008). A new way to measure student success: Introducing the student success "Funnel"--A valuable tool for retention planning and goal-setting. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.neu.edu/login?url=http://search.proquest.com/docview/1238186212?accountid=12826

Huo, Y. J., & Binning, K. R. (2008). Why the psychological experience of respect matters in group life: An integrative account. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 2(4), 1570-1585. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1751-9004.2008.00129.x

Jones, W. A., & Braxton, J. M. (2010). Cataloging and comparing institutional efforts to increase student retention rates. Journal of College Student Retention, 11(1), 123-139.

Ma, J., Pender, M., & Welch, M. (2016). Education pays 2016: The benefits of higher education for individuals and society. The College Board, Trends in Higher Education Series. Retrieved from https://trends.collegeboard.org/sites/default/files/education-pays-2016-full-report.pdf

McGrath, S. M., & Burd, G. D. (2012). A success course for freshmen on academic probation: Persistence and graduation outcomes. NACADA Journal, 32(1), 43-52.

Mohiyeddini, C., Azoulay, N., & Bauer, S (2015, May). Maximizing collaborative small group work experiences: An assessment approach. Paper presented at the Conference for Advancing Evidence-Based Teaching, Boston, MA.

Mohiyeddini, C., Johnson, R., Azoulay Jarnot, N., & Mohiyeddini, S. (in preparation). Individual differences in positive group work experiences in collaborative student learning.

Sleebos, E., Ellemers, N., & De Gilder, D. (2007). Explaining the motivational forces of (dis)respect: How self-focused and group-focused concerns can result in the display of group-serving efforts. Gruppendynamik und Organisationsberatung, 38(3), 327-342.

Smith, H. J., Tyler, T. R., & Huo, Y. J. (2003). Interpersonal treatment, social identity and organizational behavior. In S. A. Haslam, D. van Knippenberg, M. J. Platow, & N. Ellemers (Eds.), Social identity at work: Developing theory for organizational practice (pp. 155-171). Philadelphia, PA: Psychology Press.

Strauss, L. C. & Volkwein, J. F. (2004). Predictors of student commitment at two-year and four-year institutions. The Journal of Higher Education, 75(2), 203-227.

Tajfel, H. (Ed.) (1978). Differentiation between social groups: Studies in the social psychology of intergroup relations. European Monographs in Social Psychology No. 14, London: Academic Press.

Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In W. Austin, and S. Worchel. (Eds) The social psychology of intergroup relations. Monterey, CA: Brooks/Cole.

Terenzini, P. T., & Wright, T. M. (1987). Influences on students’ academic growth during four years of college. Research in Higher Education, 26(2), 161-179.

Tinto, V. (1975). Dropout from higher education: A theoretical synthesis of recent research. Review of Educational Research, 45(1), 89-125. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/1170024

Tinto, V. (2007). Research and practice of student retention: What next? Journal of College Student Retention, 8(1), 1-19.

Tyler, T. R., & Blader, S. L. (2003). The group engagement model: Procedural justice, social identity, and cooperative behavior. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 7(4), 349–361.

Wolniak, G. C., Mayhew, M. J., & Engberg, M. E. (2012). Learning’s weak link to persistence. The Journal of Higher Education, 83(6), 795-819.

Embracing Creativity to Engage Student Learning about Autism Spectrum Disorders

(Past member) — Thu, 02 Aug 2018 23:43:00 GMT

Amber M. Chenoweth and Brittany L. Jackson (Hiram College)

Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) have a relatively recent history in terms of research attention. With the newly updated diagnostic criteria in the DSM-5 (American Psychiatric Association, 2013), even more attention has been made to this spectrum of developmental disorders as individual diagnoses may have changed (e.g., individuals with former diagnoses of Asperger’s syndrome are now diagnosed with ASD). Further, typical developing students are finding themselves in a variety of situations in which students with ASD are included, often without a full understanding of the experience of their peers with ASD. This lack of understanding can lead to a range of responses toward their peers with ASD, including simple confusion and frustration when attempting to interact with their peers with ASD, to the extreme of bullying those with ASD (Swaim & Morgan, 2001). As Harnum, Duffy, and Ferguson (2007) found, this is due to the perception that individuals with ASD are not the same as typical developing individuals, leading to less openness to interaction.

Our institution is poised with a unique opportunity for our students to interact more fully with individuals with ASD, being situated nearby to a Living and Learning Community. This organization is a fully-functioning organic farm that provides the opportunity for adults with ASD to work and be provided with occupational therapy options. Several students from our institution have participated in internship opportunities at Living and Learning Community and found these experiences rewarding, both in a service aspect as well as in future career exploration. Moreover, this interaction with individuals with ASD serves to increase student understanding of the complexity of this spectrum of disorders. Because of this stimulated interest in ASD among students on our campus, several faculty members across disciplines offer courses on ASD. Given our institution’s emphasis on interdisciplinary learning, we found this to be a great opportunity to engage students in a course to explore the many facets of ASD.

Why an interdisciplinary course? Much value can be gained from engaging students in exploring a complex topic through multiple and integrated lenses. By allowing students the opportunity to explore these topics within the course setting, we can push them to challenge their previously held beliefs and ideas while they explore that shared space between disciplines. Further, interdisciplinary courses, particularly those that are team-taught, can foster creative, critical, and divergent thinking, all skills that are sought by our students’ future employers (Putrienė, 2015).

Our Course

Our course integrates the disciplines of psychology and theatre. From the psychology perspective, students are exposed to material from the scientific literature on ASD, examining with depth the topics of diagnosis, hypothesized causes, treatments, as well as the concept of neurodiversity. The theatre perspective exposes students to two key areas: playwriting and acting. Students learn techniques for telling a story drawing from multiple sources – readings, interviews, discussions – and acquire how to portray what they learn in both abstract and concrete ways, while being made aware of issues of accuracy and sensitivity to a population different from themselves. The interdisciplinary nature of the course also integrates the disciplines to model for students how the two inform one another. For example, the psychology content serves as the context for which to explore these topics in a theatrical way; awareness of body, space, and wording informs students in best approaches to interviewing individuals with ASD and those that support those individuals.

The learning objectives of this course are for students to demonstrate understanding of the science of ASD and theatre methodology (playwriting, performing), and connect and listen to the other, testing empathy skills, and gain a truer sense of one’s own humanity. To meet these objectives, we designed the course to engage students in the following activities:

· Class discussions focused on topics about the science of ASD (neurobiological etiology, symptoms, and therapeutic interventions), as well as theatrical portrayals and storytelling. The basis for these discussions are assigned readings, including both fiction and nonfiction sources, scientific articles, case studies, guest speakers, and current event topics.
· Short writing assignments that scaffold students through the writing process by requiring students to submit specific creative writing pieces drawn from scientific literature. This begins with having students write a letter based on a scientific article, then a short story, and eventually multiple scenes of a play.
· Interviews with either individuals with ASD or those that work with individuals with ASD, including caregivers and family members, teachers, doctors, intervention specialists, case workers, etc.
· Field trips to various locations to explore aspects of ASD. Past field trips have included visiting the local Living and Learning Community that provides occupational therapy for adults with ASD and New York City to see the play The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime on Broadway.
· Media portrayals that depict various aspects of ASD. Past feature films have included Rain Main, Temple Grandin, and Ben-X, as well as the documentary Autism is a World. We also have students view clips from TV shows that highlight characters either overtly diagnosed with ASD (e.g., Parenthood) and those that are exhibiting common characteristics associated with ASD (e.g., The Big Bang Theory). These portrayals are the basis for class discussions on accuracy of portrayals, the ethics of presenting characters with ASD in often stereotypical ways, how these portrayals either promote or hinder the idea of neurodiversity, as well as to inform students on how to connect with the characters they are developing in their final performance piece and present in both an accurate and sensitive way.
· The final performance piece requires students to draw upon all the class activities to develop a brief (approximately 10 minute) play focused on a specific ASD topic. Students work in small groups (5 students per group, on average) to write and perform their piece.

Assessing Our Course

During the fall 2015 offering of Exploring Ability and Disability: ASD, we administered a voluntary pre- and post-test survey to students enrolled in the course to assess changes in knowledge of ASD, as well as to inform us on the students perceived effectiveness of the course activities described above. A total of 25 of our 31 enrolled students completed both the pre- and the post-test set of questionnaires.

At pre-test, we administered a prior experience survey which revealed participants had, on average, approximately five years of experience interacting with an individual with ASD, typically a classmate, friend, co-worker, or relative.

At both the pre- and the post-test we administered the Autism Knowledge Survey-Revised (AKS-R) developed by Stuart, Swiezy, and Ashby (2008). This questionnaire of 20 statements about ASD provided a measure of baseline and change in knowledge of ASD, as participants indicated on a 6-point Likert-type scale how much they agreed or disagreed with each statement. We found that overall students did increase in their knowledge of ASD compared to pre-course baseline. However, there were a couple items that did not show the same increase in knowledge, highlighting our need to address those topics more clearly in future offerings of the course. One example included the item “Children with autism do not show attachments, even to parents/caregivers,” to which the correct response should be “Fully Disagree.” Upon reflection, we identified areas where we could emphasize the fuller range of emotion and attachments that children with ASD do express.

We also administered the Openness Scale, adapted from Harnum et al. (2007), at both pre- and post-test. This scale first presented a vignette depicting characteristic behaviors of an individual that may be diagnosed with ASD, and then presented a series of statements regarding reactions to and the willingness to interact with that individual, to which respondents rated on a 5-point Likert-type scale how much they agreed or disagreed with each statement. With this measure, we found that participants remained at their initial high openness to interact levels pre-to-post, indicating that there may have been potential bias. This bias may be from demand characteristics – who would want to admit that they would not want to interact with an individual who clearly displays behaviors of the disorder for which this course is based upon? – or from the self-selecting nature of taking a course on ASD, or both.

Lastly, we surveyed participants on their class experience with a series of open-ended questions. They all took the form of “Reflect on how the [assignment/activity] affected your understanding of individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder.” Representative responses are below.

Final performance pieces.

· “It helped me understanding people with autism because it allowed me to imagine what it would be like to actually be involved in a family with children with autism.”
· “There were many different views of autism portrayed. It reminded me that everyone experiences the disorder differently.”
· “I think it helped show how people took their own version of what they saw autism as and turned it into a play. Each play had different aspects to it which showed all the things we've learned.”

Short writing assignments.

· “They allowed me to express what I have learned in different ways from monologues to poems. Sometimes things are hard to express so this gave me the chance to try different ways.”
· “The SWA's were the most influential piece for my learning in this course. I learned a ton through the articles and reflecting in a creative way.”
· “I never thought I could be creative when talking about autism.”

Class discussions.

· “It allowed me to see and compare my thoughts with my peers and fellow classmates. I got to see and hear that I wasn't the only person with confusions and thoughts about people with autism.”
· “They allowed me to see many different opinions from everyone in class. Not everyone has the same type and amount of experiences so this class gave me the chance to see what others see and think.”

Interviews.

· “It made me face something about my friend. And myself.”
· “I learned SO much about my interviewee and ASD in general. I had known the person for years, yet never thought to ask these questions or care to listen for the answers. This was a crucial part of the course.”

Field trips and media portrayals.

· “It definitely drew my attention to the fact that many types of the disorder are not reflected in the media at all.”
· “I loved them all, all of them provided me with a learning experience that helped me gain an understanding of ASD. It also reminded me that this is something I want to do for the rest of my life.”
· “This was a great idea as it allowed us to gain realistic perspectives of people with ASD. Experiencing something in real life is much different than in a classroom or through a book.”

As with any course assessment, however, not all our responses were quite so positive. A few respondents indicated they thought the short writing assignments and class discussions were repetitive, and that the final performance pieces showed more stereotypical representations of ASD. Overall, though, students generally rated each of the activities as valuable at some level, and attributed the activities and assignments to enhancing their knowledge of ASD.

Lessons Learned

From the open-ended responses, both indicating “success” as well as negative aspects to consider for future modifications to the course, we have identified key lessons learned when teaching a course on a complex and sensitive topic, particularly when you are expecting them to demonstrate their understanding through creative methods.

First, it is crucial to provide your students lots of examples. Luckily, we have taught this course a handful of times now and have built up a repository of good examples (with those students’ permission, of course) to share with our students, particularly for the short writing assignments. One area we identified could use more examples is with plays and performances in different formats. By having students practice what we are expecting to have them complete by the end of the course – i.e., a full performance piece – we greatly enhance the success of achieving that learning goal.

Second, whenever possible incorporate experiential learning opportunities. As evidenced by the responses we received about the field trips and interviews, students learn so much by doing rather than just through merely reading or being lectured to. We are fortunate to have the Living and Learning Community for adults with ASD within walking distance of our campus, but there are other ways to incorporate these experiences into any course. For example, reach out to the local community for guest speakers, such as special education instructors, the director of the local disability services office, and parents of children with ASD. In our experience, many of the individuals in these positions are wanting to share their experiences to promote greater understanding. We also found value from engaging our students in simulation exercises, such as simulating sensory overload. However, such exercises need to be placed in the correct context and introduced and discussed in a way to not promote feelings of pity in the students, but rather to promote understanding (Nario-Redmond, Gospodinov, & Cobb, 2017).

Third, and we would argue most important, be encouraging! For some students, this is their first creative experience and they are anxious. In our course, many of our students did not come having had acting experience, or even creative writing experience. It was important for us to emphasize that the class space was a safe space to explore both the theme and content of the course, as well as how to express themselves in a creative way. This led to our favorite response provided above: “I never thought I could be creative when talking about autism.”

References

American Psychiatric Association. (2013). Autism Spectrum Disorder. In Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5^th ed.), 50–59.

Harnum, M., Duffy, J., & Ferguson, D. A. (2007). Adults’ versus children’s perceptions of a child with autism or attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 37, 1337-1343.

Nario-Redmond, M. R., Gospodinov, D., & Cobb, A. (2017, March 13). Crip for a day: The unintended negative consequences of disability simulations. Rehabilitation Psychology. Advance online publication. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/rep0000127

Putrienė, N. (2015). The links between competences acquired through interdisciplinary studies and the needs of the labour market. Social Sciences (1392-0758), 88(2), 54-64. doi:10.5755/j01.ss.88.2.12741

Swaim, K. F., & Morgan, S. B. (2001). Children’s attitudes and behavioral intentions toward a peer with autistic behaviors: Does a brief educational intervention have an effect? Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 31, 195-205

Stuart, M., Swiezy, N., & Ashby, I. (February 2008). Autism Knowledge Survey: Understanding Trends in Autism Spectrum Disorders. Poster presented at the 2^nd annual ABA Autism Conference, Atlanta, GA.

Understanding Faith Integration from a Student Perspective

(Past member) — Tue, 03 Jul 2018 14:53:57 GMT

Laura Chesniak-Phipps and Laura Terry (Grand Canyon University)

Faculty members at a Christian university are typically expected to integrate faith into the curriculum. Not only is this encouraged by the administration and falls in line with the mission and vision of the university, but it is also expected by many students. A previous study suggested that students who attend Christian institutions anticipated that their education would prepare them for their future career and also strengthen their spirituality (Sherr, Huff & Curran, 2007). Often, faith integration is defined at the university level and does not consider the students’ perception of this integration (Burton & Nwosu, 2003). As faculty at a Christian university, we were interested in learning from students how they perceived the Integration of Faith and Learning (IFL). The goal was to determine where IFL was apparent and how faculty could best include this element in their courses. Results of this investigation provided us with insight into student perceptions and offered an opportunity for us to share suggestions with institutions and professors interested in IFL.

In order to examine this issue, students who were enrolled in Introduction to Psychology courses were asked to participate in focus groups. Focus groups were selected for data collection because they allow for follow-up questions to clarify, and gain a richer understanding of, participant responses. Focus groups, consisting of 50 students, lasted approximately one hour and participants were asked five questions. Students were first asked to sign informed consent forms and then were separated into groups of 7-8. Questions were presented one at a time, and participants were asked to spend a few minutes to individually respond. They were given small pieces of paper and told to write down one response per paper and then were asked to share their responses with their group. When ideas were shared, group members with similar ideas were to indicate that a theme was identified. This allowed for organic coding within the small groups. Finally, the groups were asked to report their responses to the whole group so that themes could be identified and ideas could be grouped. After the focus group was complete, the researchers examined the categories that were created by the students and categorized responses into logical themes.

Professor Led Integration

One of the main findings of the focus groups was that participants viewed instructors as being primarily responsible for faith integration. Participants also reported that they experienced faith integration in some classes but not in others. This suggests that while instructors are seen as primarily responsible for integrating faith, not all are doing so. It may be that some instructors do not feel comfortable integrating faith, or are not sure how to go about doing so. These results support findings from past research (Dykstra, Foster, Kleiner & Koch, 1995; Hall, Ripley, Garzon & Mangis, 2009) which indicated that professors play an integral role in integration of faith in the classroom and should be considered the main source of IFL. From examining previous studies, and the current focus group work, it is clear that students see their professors as not only leaders in their field, but also factors in their development of faith and as a connection between faith and their specific discipline. These results suggest that universities should consider professors as primary agents for the integration of faith and should provide training and necessary resources to support them in this endeavor.

Integration across Disciplines

It was not surprising that when participants were asked about in which types of classes they saw IFL, the majority responded theology. However, they also reported IFL in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), humanities, communications, business and fine arts classes. Furthermore, with the exception of theology, the participants also reported perceived difficulty integrating faith into the above disciplines. This suggests that while classes focusing on religion can easily include components of faith, it is possible to integrate faith into all classes, regardless of the discipline. One reason for this may be that individual professors who teach these classes have a strong faith-base. This also presents an opportunity to explore the curriculum and determine where faith can be integrated organically within each discipline, regardless of an instructor’s religious background. While some of these areas may be more challenging than others, participant responses indicated that there is integration which suggests it is possible and it can be successful.

Solutions for Integration

Due to the responsibility of IFL resting primarily on the professor, the training, resources, and materials may help to increase instructor knowledge and confidence. A standardized curriculum could also be developed to include the integration of faith into specific topics within the class. Instructors who are noted as being skilled with integrating faith can be consulted when developing curricula. Dykstra et al. (1995) identified a level of integration where courses can be designed with the inclusion of IFL activities. Incorporating elements of faith into courses through a centralized curriculum would ensure that, despite individual differences in instructors, students will receive the same types of integration. Universities that do not adopt a fully centralized curriculum but want to integrate faith seamlessly, may choose to incorporate assignments or discussion questions that can be used by all faculty members. This would make certain that, despite individual differences in instructors, students will receive the integration they desire.

Past research suggested that discussion is one of the most common types of integration (Hall et al., 2009) and that this is a path for students to process their personal views (Dyksta et al., 1995). In the focus groups, only a small number of participants reported that class discussion was where they experienced IFL. Some focus group participants referred to the main discussion forum in the online learning management system as a place where discussion could be used. One option could be to have instructors incorporate pre-written discussion questions into the learning management system that focus on IFL. If there are instructors who are not comfortable with IFL in their classroom, pre-written discussion questions that tie into content of the course could be added to provide an avenue to incorporate and discuss faith. Professors who are less comfortable integrating faith or do not have the personal experience to do so can still provide IFL for their students.

Students indicated several ways in which faith could be integrated into the classroom and campus experiences. Examples included prayer and personal expression that demonstrate the fruits of the spirit. Prayer in the classroom can be achieved in a variety of ways, from professor led prayer to students taking turns leading prayers, or through online discussion forums. One option professors might choose to use for incorporation is a prayer forum in their learning management system. This provides an opportunity for students to share their prayer requests and to pray for each other.

IFL is an important part of the curriculum at Christian universities and understanding student perceptions of integration can lead to more effective strategies. As faculty members, we strive to deliver a quality education to our students and support the mission and vision of our university. Understanding our student’s perceptions allows us to examine what is being done well and what can be improved upon. While this study focuses on IFL, important lessons can be derived for other learning institutions. In higher education, it is important to understand curricular objectives that are being delivered to students.

Individual differences in instruction can be leveled by providing a standard curriculum to ensure that all graduates, regardless of their program of study, class modality, or instructor, receive a quality education.

References

Burton, L.D., & Nwosu, C.C. (2003). Student perceptions of the integration of faith, learning, and practice in an educational methods course. Journal of Research on Christian Education 12(2), 101-135.

Chu, J. (2005) Faith and frat boys. Higher Education Research Institute, 165 (19). 48-50.

Dykstra, M. L., Foster. J. D., Kleiner, K. A., Koch, C. J. (1995). Integrating across the psychology curriculum: A correlation review approach. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 23(4). 278-288.

Hall, L. E. M., Ripley, J. S., Garzon, F. L., Mangis, M. W. (2009). The other side of the podium: Student perspectives on learning integration. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 37(1). 15-27.

Sherr, M., Huff, G., & Curran, M. (2007). Student perceptions of salient indicators of integration of faith and learning (IFL): The Christian vocation model. Journal of Research on Christian Education, 16(1), 15-33.

High-impact learning practices in the redesign of an undergraduate laboratory course

(Past member) — Mon, 04 Jun 2018 01:57:14 GMT

Suzanne Wood (University of Toronto)

At large research universities, undergraduates can get lost in the shuffle. Both logistically and economically, it is more feasible to hold lecture-style classes and to leave undergraduate lab experiences to those who are selected for research assistant positions. However, this places a significant strain on already overburdened research faculty and their labs and leaves many qualified undergraduates in the lurch. These undergraduates may be curious about research but may lack the confidence to approach faculty members for open research opportunities (see Bangera & Brownell, 2014 for discussion). Running laboratory courses can meet the needs of these students and lead to many of the same outcomes as achieved through individual research placements in labs, including improvement in scientific writing, computational, and technical skills (Shapiro et al., 2015). Undergraduate research experiences have also been found to bolster student interest in science as a career (Lopatto, 2007).

One of the most exciting components of my position at the University of Toronto Psychology department was the directive to update the small (maximum enrollment of 20) psychobiology (behavioral neuroscience) undergraduate lab course with new, innovative methods. While I was fortunate that my department was already footing the bill for a massive renovation of the dedicated lab space, including the purchase of lightly used equipment, the accompanying course development was left entirely in my hands. To best utilize these resources, I set about designing a course that would leverage the power of high-impact learning practices which can lead to increased student engagement and retention (Kuh, 2008). These types of learning practices are highly encouraged at the University of Toronto and are documented periodically as part of the National Survey of Student Engagement (University of Toronto, 2014). The power of these practices can be harnessed for many types of courses, but are particularly amenable for a laboratory course setting.

High-Impact Practices

The key elements of high-impact practices were integrated into the course redesign as follows:

Undergraduate Research

While protocols for this course were established and approved ahead of time, students had the rare opportunity to gain hands-on experience with rodents before deciding to join a lab or apply for graduate school. In addition, while neural structures had been the focus of tissue staining techniques in previous iterations of this course, I updated the curriculum to include analysis of neural activity (c-fos staining). Experience with these types of technique are critical for those undergraduates hoping to pursue behavioral neuroscience graduate work today.

Collaborative Projects

Experiment days required participation from all students. Students were also encouraged to work on statistical analyses together, and time in class was allocated to help facilitate this collaboration. Only the writing assignments were completed independently. This distribution of work was an attempt to more closely mimic actual research settings (significant collaboration), while providing assignments for individual marks (written assignments).

Writing-Intensive Course

Students submitted multiple writing assignments throughout the semester. Time was devoted in class to faculty-student, or teaching assistant (TA)-student, one-on-one meetings to discuss each writing assignment. The manner in which students addressed their own weaknesses throughout the semester was considered when assigning grades. This type of intensive feedback was only realistically possible with a small instructor (and TA)-student ratio.

Career Exploration in the Community

Preferences in enrollment were given to third year research specialists (high-achieving students who were interested in research, typically with intentions to attend graduate or medical school). With this in mind, I focused on what they would need to know after graduation, either when applying to jobs or graduate programs. I worked with the Career Centre to schedule a visit for students to a local, off-campus neuroscience laboratory during regular class time. To ensure the greatest learning outcomes, I scheduled a preparation session hosted by the Career Centre during class the week before the trip, as well as a debriefing session the week afterward. Students were encouraged to learn not just about the “traditional” research career paths, but also about paths in “non-traditional” science roles (e.g., fundraising, human resources, infrastructure, vivarium management, etc.).

Student-Faculty Interactions

The course offered undergraduates the rare opportunity to interact directly with a faculty member on a weekly basis in a small group setting. In my department, third and fourth year courses tend to enroll 50 students, with a small number of seminars offered with maximum enrollments of 20. This small group format allowed for many informal discussions regarding topics in related research areas, career paths, etc. The TA for the class was also tapped for information regarding graduate school applications, life as a graduate student, and other related topics.

Student Reactions

The university-wide, online course evaluation tool gathered opinions from students over the past two years concerning the perceived quality of their educational experience in this lab course. The responses were overwhelmingly positive. Below are sample quotes from the anonymous student feedback concerning the high-impact learning course components:

“This lab course is extremely novel and interesting…I’ve never learned anything this stimulating and applied in any of my other courses.”

“I learned valuable skills that are rare for an undergraduate course.”

“[The] personal feedback on papers was excellent and I saw a massive improvement in my scientific writing.”

“Such a great course that is unique from most other courses at U of T.”

“Why aren’t there more courses like this available to undergraduates?!”

Notably, one student applied to a graduate program in Health Services Administration after completing this course. She ascribes this decision to the class field trip and hearing from one of the neuroscience institute’s employees about “non-traditional” career paths.

Obstacles

While the above components of this course have been successful, I would be remiss if I did not mention some of the significant hurdles faced when developing this course. Specifically, three main obstacles continued to rear their heads whenever I seemed to finally settle on an activity or experiment: time, money, and the lengthy commute of my students.

Time

One of the challenges in running this lab course was carving out the time to prepare. In contrast to a lecture-based course, a lab course involves preparation of not only learning objectives, content, assignments, and the like, but also logistics such as obtaining the relevant ethics board approval, equipment set up and testing, federal approval for scheduled drug possession, piloting experiments ahead of time, etc. The departmentally assigned teaching assistant was only employed for the term, so, in preparation throughout the summer, I found myself working on tasks during the day that required business hour communication (e.g., federal drug approvals) as well as cognitively taxing jobs such as course design. I spent nights on more menial tasks such as setting up and testing equipment.

To help offset some of the time burden during the following year, I applied for a small university grant (Advancing Teaching and Learning in Arts & Science; ATLAS) that supported a TA to assist throughout the year in the design, implementation, and piloting of new protocols. The TA was invaluable in offsetting some of the burden of the background work involved in this course, leaving me the time to handle course design logistics. The TA shined in the development of the brain histology protocol and the listing of the necessary equipment and supplies to run it. He completed this task with gusto, leaving no detail out, and saving me countless hours.

In addition, recruiting help from the Career Centre was essential for setting up the field trip component of the class. They were a source of enthusiastic support during both terms. Again, this collaboration saved me an enormous amount of time in scheduling logistics.

Money

Tied in closely with time constraints are money issues. As I mentioned above, an in-house grant helped me greatly, not only for the TA assistance outside of the regular term, but also for purchasing critical pieces of small equipment to complement what was already being supplied by the department. Specifically, I added in molecular biology techniques that reflected common practices in today’s behavioral neuroscience research (it is no longer sufficient to focus exclusively on animal behavior; genetic, histological, and molecular biological techniques are also expected). Equipment such as pipettes and glassware were not part of the lab renovation but were critical to the implementation of these new protocols.

For instructors at smaller institutions, or if no in-house financial support is available, you may consider the possibility of recruiting undergraduate volunteers who were superstars in previous iterations of the class. While you will benefit from their assistance, the students will benefit enormously from this experience: they will see the setup of the lab from the “inside” perspective and will solidify what they learned in the class. This type of leadership experience will set them apart from their fellow students when applying to graduate school or employment positions upon graduation. In general, undergraduate teaching assistants have been found to benefit greatly from their experiences with the class (e.g., Schalk, McGinnis, Harring, Hendrickson, & Smith, 2009).

Large, Commuter Campus

At a primarily commuter campus, the design of the class is constrained to events taking place during class hours only. This is particularly challenging in a psychobiology class where behavioral animal experiments are used. Extended learning tasks (e.g., Morris water maze, radial arm maze, etc.) are simply out of the question. I selected tasks that could be run within a three-hour class session: an abbreviated version of object recognition, comparing rats’ performance on low-dose amphetamine with saline; and open field locomotion, comparing mice injected with diazepam, amphetamine, or saline. Brain tissue histology was performed over the course of several weeks, with tissue being frozen between sessions.

Benefits can also be found with this type of situation. While students did not have the opportunity to run paradigms that required daily interactions with the rodents, having all laboratory work performed within class hours made this unique experience accessible to students who might not have the flexibility to participate in apprentice-style lab opportunities (e.g., those with lengthy commutes, jobs, or other time commitments; see Bangera & Brownell, 2014). In addition, I was able to leverage the urban location of the campus to coordinate a field trip within walking distance (see High-Impact Practices: Career Exploration in the Community section).

Take Away Points

While this piece focuses on a single course at a large research institution, the embedded lessons can be applied to many different settings:

1) Seek out and find help. Learn about the resource available to you such as institutional funding and offices on campus such as the career center, teaching and learning center, etc. Also, look to TAs and undergraduates to participate in the implementation of classes that are as technically burdensome.

2) Know your students. Do your students commute, or do they live on campus? Are they 3^rd and 4^th year students, or are they just starting out? Considerations such as these can help guide your instructional design choices (although all could probably benefit from some instruction on scientific writing, as well as a basic stats review).

3) While new equipment is fun, it does not make a class. Take advantage of what you have access to, but know that your job is not done once those boxes of new equipment and supplies have been delivered. Implementing high-impact practices can help to ensure important learning experiences for your students, regardless of sophistication of laboratory techniques.

References

Bangera, G., & Brownell, S. E. (2014). Course-based undergraduate research experiences can make scientific research more inclusive. CBE Life Sci Educ, 13(4), 602-606. doi:10.1187/cbe.14-06-0099

Kuh, G. D. (2008). High-Impact Educational Practices: What They Are, Who Has Access to Them, and Why They Matter. Washington, DC: Association of American Colleges and Universities.

Lopatto, D. (2007). Undergraduate research experiences support science career decisions and active learning. CBE Life Sci Educ, 6(4), 297-306. doi:10.1187/cbe.07-06-0039

Schalk, K. A., McGinnis, J. R., Harring, J. R., Hendrickson, A., & Smith, A. C. (2009). The undergraduate teaching assistant experience offers opportunities similar to the undergraduate research experience. J Microbiol Biol Educ, 10(1), 32-42.

Shapiro, C., Moberg-Parker, J., Toma, S., Ayon, C., Zimmerman, H., Roth-Johnson, E. A., . . . Sanders, E. R. (2015). Comparing the Impact of Course-Based and Apprentice-Based Research Experiences in a Life Science Laboratory Curriculum. J Microbiol Biol Educ, 16(2), 186-197. doi:10.1128/jmbe.v16i2.1045

University of Toronto (2014). Results of the National Survey of Student Engagement. Retrieved on May 31, 2017 from http://www.provost.utoronto.ca/Assets/Provost+Digital+Assets/NSSE2014report.pdf

Beyond Academic Boundaries: Tips for Teaching Psychology to the Community

(Past member) — Tue, 01 May 2018 22:10:52 GMT

Karen Z. Naufel (Georgia Southern University)

Psychology sometimes has a public relations problem. People are skeptical of its science (Lillienfeld, 2012) and usefulness (Halonen, 2011). It is important that we teach others about the practicality and ubiquity of psychology. Teaching about these values is not limited to only the classroom. Instead, if people are to learn about psychological science, we as instructors must extend our teaching beyond our academic borders. As others have said, we must teach to the community (e.g., Lilienfeld, 2012; Zimbardo, 2004).

Over the past several years, I have had this privilege of teaching psychology in the community. The process is different from teaching students. Community members have more freedom in choosing what they want to learn. The technology available in the classroom is not always available in community settings. The chance to correct a misunderstanding of information is limited. Simply put, effective teaching in the community often requires a different subset of skills than effective classroom teaching. In this essay, I present some tips for teaching the community that I've picked up along the way. Although there are many ways to teach in the community, I focus on how to give lectures (or “programs” as they are typically called).

Tips for Getting Started

Compared to students, community members have different incentives for learning material: They are not learning to ace tests or get good grades. Instead, they choose to learn when topics appeal to them. Therefore, it is crucial to identify topics that will appeal to a wide, non-academic audience. Identifying topics that will draw in such an audience can be tricky. If a program topic seems relevant and interesting, people come. If a program topic is too narrow, controversial, or academic, then community members may shy away from attending. Here are some tips for generating appealing program topics:

• Pick topics that meet community needs. If people stereotype psychology as a field that

only helps others with personal problems, then people are not likely to know how psychology could relate to them. Likewise, if psychology instructors aren’t connected with the community, then instructors also may not know what the community really needs.

Identifying community needs comes from submersing oneself in the community. It can come from looking at local organizations’ webpages, daily conversations with people at the coffee shop, or a chat with a worker while in the grocery store checkout line. Think about how psychology is connected to the issues that others bring up in these situations. Then, brainstorm program ideas that relate.

• Teach only what you know. As you generate program ideas, remember the ethicality of teaching only what you know. The American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct has specific provisions regarding making public statements [see Sections 2.01(a & c); 5 & 7]. Additionally, academic freedom does provide some license to talk freely. However, this freedom also comes with the responsibility of providing accurate information (Hunt, 2010). Sometimes, you may be invited (or tempted) to give a program on a topic outside of your area of expertise. In such instances, it is best to decline and instead refer the program to a knowledgeable colleague.

• Reframe program titles so they don’t create reactance. As we know from our long familiarity with the confirmation bias, people look for information that confirms rather than disconfirms their beliefs (Nickerson, 1998). Therefore, a talk entitled, “Spanking: Why It’s Not a Good Idea” will likely only draw in a crowd of people who already agree with the premise. Those who spank their children—arguably those who need this information more—may avoid the talk altogether. A talk title that is less direct (e.g., “Making the Terrible Twos Less Terrible: Strategies for Raising Healthy Toddlers, Preschoolers, and Children”) may elicit greater reception.

• Rapport matters. Even with a snazzy title, it can be difficult to get an audience. In tightknit or small communities, activities from newcomers or outsiders may be viewed suspiciously. Therefore, posting fliers about your program around town, creating a public Facebook event, or announcing it in a newspaper may work, but the resulting audiences may be embarrassingly minimal. (Can you imagine giving a talk to only one person? I can. It’s awkward.)

Personally, the best experiences I have had in getting program gigs have come from connecting with people from the community (see Tip 1). Go to Farmer’s Markets, spin classes, and community events. While waiting for your coffee at the local shop, chat with another frequent customer. Join locally-based Facebook groups or other groups, many of whom can recruit audiences for you. As you foster these friendships, it becomes easier for you to tell them what you do, and easier for them to ask for and value your expertise.

• Consider how your institution views these activities. Most likely, your institution will herald these activities as important service work. However, consider important policy and legal ramifications. Such service opportunities may also be considered consulting work in certain circumstances—even if your work is free. In these cases, institutions may limit the number of hours a faculty member can engage in consulting behaviors. Some institutions may require permission to use university’s supplies, such as a laptop or printer, for these events. Others may fully cover you should be injured while delivering a program, but the institution may require that formal paperwork be filed beforehand.

Tips for Developing a Program

Creating a lecture is not the same as developing a program. Beloved teaching strategies like think-pair-share may seem odd in a community setting, and assigning readings beforehand may not be possible. Instead, an instructor will likely get one brief shot to deliver the information clearly and succinctly. To increase the likelihood that a program goes well, consider these tips:

• Teach to the community, not to students. I remember a moment I was discussing research with a community member. I used the word “altruistic”— a word with which the community member was unfamiliar. She then said, “you professors like your big words, don’t you?” At that moment, I felt the rapport between us plummet. I had reinforced a stereotype that academics were not connected to the outside community.

Since then, I’ve aimed to be more mindful of my audience. Americans tend to read an eighth-grade level or less, and a substantial portion of the population lacks basic reading skills (Literacy Project Foundation, 2017). Therefore, lectures for a typical college-level psychology class may be too advanced for many community members, and it is important to adjust accordingly.

To make it more likely that a program appeals to wide audiences, it’s wise to have people with a variety of educational backgrounds offer feedback on your program’s recruitment materials, program, and activities. Although it is intended for creating health materials, the Center for Disease Control’s brochure Simply Put: A Guide for Creating Easy-to-Understand Materials has transferrable tips for delivering presentations to an audience with a wide range of literacy levels (Center for Disease Control, 2009). Additionally, reading-level calculation tools, such as the Flesch-Kincaid scale, can determine if text (or a transcription of what one plans to say) is at an acceptable level. Many word processing software systems, like MS Word, have such tools built in.

• Fair use rules for copyrighted material may be different. Do you have a favorite cartoon that you like to show to your classes? Is there a graph in a journal article that really illustrates a concept? The same principles for fair use in academic settings are not necessarily the same ones for use in community settings. To determine what media can be included in a program, consider how these media will be used. For instance, does the organization want to post your program's handouts on their webpage? Will the organization disseminate your program's materials to others? It is pertinent to review fair use policies to determine whether materials can be used.

Some websites have materials that are free for public use. For instance, Pixabay.com has thousands of photographs available, and it does not require attribution or the creator’s permission to use. Other websites, such as the NOBA project (NOBAproject.com), have license agreements explaining how the material can be used and shared.

• Plan for no PowerPoint. If planning to use technology as part of the presentation, and your program is off campus, remember that not all organizations have equipment for you to use. BYOT (Bringing Your Own Technology) may be an option. If you choose to BYOT, ask about the room setup prior to coming. Rooms can be too small for a projector, outlets may not be available, or the room setup may not be conducive for using technology. On one occasion, I was told a monitor with an HDMI cable would be available to hookup to my laptop. It was, but the monitor size was much too small for everyone to see the graphics clearly. On another occasion, I was promised a projector. When I arrived, they had a projector, but no projector screen. Unfortunately, art occupied all wall space, which meant I couldn’t project on those surfaces. Luckily, I had brought handouts so I could improvise on the spot.

Although I love using technology in the classroom, I rarely use it anymore when giving programs to the community. Instead, I have found that giant Post-It® notes can be great for writing quick points or drawing quick visuals. Handouts, too, can provide a summary of key points without relying on the randomness of technology.

• Be prepared to give programs of varying lengths. Instructors may be used to having nearly an hour or more to give a program. However, community programs vary drastically in time allotment. Though sometimes I have an hour or more to speak, I am usually asked to give shorter (10-20 minute) programs.

Some programs take place during an organization’s regular meeting. Their regular meeting agenda may run long, which cuts into the program time. I have had to change the length of my program on the spot. Just as it is important to have an idea what to cut from a lecture, it is also a good to have an idea what to cut if giving a program.

If you find yourself with a tiny time limit, remember these rules: 1) Emphasize a single main point, and 2) Provide participants with specific steps for how to obtain more information upon completion. The last step is particularly important in preventing participants from internet searching pseudoscientific and inaccurate information.

Tips for Finishing up a Program

• Assess your work. Techniques that work in classrooms may not work as well in the community. Alternatively, a novel approach in the community may inspire a new teaching technique for your classroom. If at all at all possible, chat with attendees after you give your program. Such chats can provide insight to if and how they will use the information they learned. For longer programs and workshops, it is also acceptable to ask participants to complete a very brief survey about your talk. (You can for shorter programs as well, but it may impinge on your time limit). The assessment aspect, whether formal or informal, is vital for improving your techniques for future programs.

• Take experiences back to the classroom. Teaching community members can augment the quality of your own classes. Students often crave real-world application of material, and these experiences—unless proprietary—can provide examples to share with your students. Additionally, these experiences can foster the community relationships necessary to have successful and unique service learning opportunities. For instance, a program on creating customer satisfaction surveys for small business owners could transform into an indirect service learning project for students in a research methods course. To maintain a relationship with the community members following a program, the instructor could suggest having students work on the project as part of a course assignment.

• Enjoy the reward. Though teaching students and the community may require different approaches, they do yield similar feelings of reward. When teaching either in the classroom or in the community, we are often providing the first glimpse of psychological science. In both cases, it is exciting to see those wide-eyed moments when people realize the extent to which psychology is valuable to them.

References

American Psychological Association. (2017). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of

conduct (2002, Amended June 1, 2010 and January 1, 2017). Retrieved from

http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index.aspx

Center for Disease Control (2009). Simply out: A guide for creating easy-to-understand

materials. Retrieved on July 24, 2017

from https://www.cdc.gov/healthliteracy/pdf/simply_put.pdf

Halonen, J. (2011). Are there too many psychology majors? White paper prepared for Staff of

the State University System of Florida Board of Governance. Retrieved from

https://www.cogdop.org/page_attachments/0000/0199/FLA_White_Paper_for_cogop_posting.pdf

Hunt, E. (2010) The rights and responsibilities implied by academic freedom. Personality and Individual Differences, 49, 264-271. doi:10.1016/j.paid.2010.01.011

Lilienfeld, S. O. (2012). Public skepticism of psychology: why many people perceive the study

of human behavior as unscientific. American Psychologist, 67, 111-129. doi:

10.1037/a0023963

Literacy Foundation Project (2017). Staggering Illiteracy Statistics. Retrieved on July 24, 2017

from http://literacyprojectfoundation.org/community/statistics/

Nickerson, R. S. (1998). Confirmation bias: A ubiquitous phenomenon in many guises. Review

of General Psychology, 2, 175-220. doi: 10.1037/1089-2680.2.2.175

Zimbardo, P. G. (2004). Does psychology make a significant difference in our lives? American

Psychologist, 59, 339-351. doi: 10.1037/0003-066X.59.5.339

The Benefits of Using Ungraded Review Quizzes in Face-to-Face Courses

(Past member) — Sun, 01 Apr 2018 21:10:39 GMT

Kamil Hamaoui (Westchester Community College)

Empirical studies have established that the testing effect is an effective strategy for improving long-term memory (Brown, Roediger, & McDaniel, 2014; Roediger, Smith, & Putnam, 2011). In short, we can improve our ability to remember information, concepts, and skills when we test ourselves during learning. In terms of the stage model of memory, if we repeatedly practice retrieving a memory from long-term memory into working memory, it becomes more firmly consolidated in long-term memory, preventing future forgetting.

Most studies of the testing effect have been conducted in the lab, under carefully controlled, artificial conditions, which calls the external validity of the effect into question. However, in recent years, researchers interested in teaching and learning have examined the applicability of the testing effect to the classroom setting. The testing effect can be used in the classroom by administering quizzes on content that students have already learned, whether through reading, lecture, discussion, or some other activity. These quizzes can be multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank, short-answer, etc. and may be administered at the beginning of a class meeting, at the end, or integrated throughout coverage of the content. Does the periodic use of review quizzes in the classroom lead students to better learn and remember course content? Will students who are quizzed perform better on the comprehensive exams given after a block of material or at the end of the term?

Findings from applied studies on the testing effect are mixed, but Nguyen and McDaniel (2015) present some general conclusions in their review of the existing literature. Quizzing does improve exam performance when the exam questions are the same or similar to the quiz questions. However, it seems that there is no improvement if the exam questions test on the same topic as the quizzes, but on different concepts.

This suggests that if we want to make maximum use of the testing effect to improve student learning, we should quiz students on all the concepts we want them to learn. As any instructor knows, however, regardless of the level of experience, this isn’t feasible. As it is, without any class time devoted to quizzing, we struggle with the issue of what content to cover in class, since we don’t have enough time to cover everything we want students to learn. This raises several questions:

· Can quizzing serve a purpose beyond the testing effect?
· Will having periodic review quizzes on some concepts motivate students to study outside of the classroom? If so, will the type of studying they do benefit their long-term memory of the material studied?
· Does it make a difference if the quizzes are graded or ungraded? Will graded quizzes motivate students to study more effectively, leading to better long-term learning?

In order to address these questions and get some answers for myself, I designed and conducted an experiment on the effects of different types of review quizzes on long-term learning in three sections of my General Psychology course at Westchester Community College. I administered periodic short-essay quizzes testing students’ (n = 75) understanding of specific concepts covered during the previous class sessions. Quizzes were scheduled and designated as counting towards the course grade (graded), not counting towards the course grade (ungraded), or potentially counting towards the course grade (pop). For the latter condition, a coin toss just prior to the quiz determined whether the quiz would be graded or not. A Latin square design was used to control for differences in the difficulty of topics and order effects. Specifically, each quiz condition was assigned to a different topic (sensation and perception, learning, or memory) in each of the three sections, and each quiz condition was assigned to a different time in the term (first, second, or third) in each of the three sections.]

Unannounced, practice tests consisting of short-essay questions were administered halfway through the term and at the conclusion of the term. These tests included questions on the same topics as the review quizzes, but on different concepts. I predicted that students would perform better on the topics which had preceding graded or pop review quizzes than ungraded quizzes, thinking that students would study these topics more in preparation for those quizzes.

What did I find? There were no significant differences in test scores between the different quiz conditions. Evidently, the type of studying that students did in preparation for graded or potentially graded quizzes was not beneficial to their long-term learning relative to the type of studying, if any, that students did in preparation for ungraded quizzes. My guess is that most students simply read over their notes for a few minutes right before the quiz as they were waiting for class to begin. This might have been effective for performing well on the quiz, but it did not benefit their long-term learning any more than whatever preparation (probably none) that they did for ungraded quizzes. As we know, reading and understanding what is being read in the moment is not the same thing as learning and remembering something in the long term. Also, “massed practice,” familiar to students as cramming, is not as effective as “distributed practice” or spacing out one’s studying in smaller learning sessions (Brown, Roediger, & McDaniel, 2014). Ironically, at the end of the term, students reported that they thought the graded or pop quizzes were best for their personal learning because they studied more. This suggests that students do not have insight into the studying strategies that are required for long-term retention of course content.

What else did students think about the different kinds of quizzes? Beyond their erroneous belief that the additional studying they did for graded or potentially graded quizzes compared to ungraded quizzes was good for their learning, students reported a strong dislike for the pop quizzes. They preferred predictability, either knowing that a quiz would be worth points or not. If it was worth points, they reported being more motivated to study and felt rewarded for their studying. If it was not worth points, they felt less anxiety and could focus on other classes.

So what did I learn from this study? How will it inform my teaching? I learned that ungraded quizzes are the way to go. Making quizzes graded or potentially graded does not lead students to study in ways that benefit their long-term learning any more than making them ungraded, and many students experience increased stress from graded quizzes. In addition, making quizzes graded means you have to grade them, which can take considerable time depending upon the type of questions and the size of the class.

On the other hand, using ungraded, in-class review quizzes has multiple benefits. If exams have similar questions to the quizzes or test on the same concepts, the testing effect will boost students’ learning and performance on the exams. And, a few studies have found that ungraded quizzes actually produce a stronger testing effect than graded quizzes (Khanna, 2015; Wickline & Spektor, 2011).

In addition, with appropriate feedback, review quizzes can serve as a valuable formative assessment tool. Students can learn what they know and what they don’t know, and how their thinking and test-taking can be improved. If quizzes consist of short-answer or short-essay questions, after students write their responses, the teacher can ask students to share what they wrote and then evaluate the responses for students in class. Many criteria or intellectual standards (Paul & Elder, 2000) factor into the quality of written work. These include accuracy, clarity, precision, logic, depth, breadth, relevance, significance, and fairness. Criteria other than accuracy, which is whether the response is correct or incorrect, often make the difference between a “good,” “very good,” or “excellent” response.

For example, let’s say that a student writes that evolutionary psychology is the “study of traits and what they do for us.” This is basically correct, but the response is of low quality. The wording “what they do for us” lacks precision and clarity. The wording could be improved by stating that evolutionary psychology is the study of how traits “function to improve our adaptiveness to the environments in which we live.” The instructor can point out that adaptation, or a variant of the term, is a keyword that should be included in the definition. It could also be pointed out that the response lacks relevance to psychology, which is about behavior and mental processes. To make the response relevant, the wording “behavioral and psychological” traits should be included. Moreover, it’s not just about humans. To make the definition broader, non-human animals, which are studied by comparative psychologists, should be included as well. Taking the time to give this type of detailed feedback in class teaches students about critical evaluation, an important part of critical thinking. It also gives students clear expectations for how their written work on exams and assignments will be graded.

One last benefit of using in-class review quizzes is that they can be used to incentivize attendance and create a more orderly beginning and end to the class session. If attendance is required for the course, papers students use to write their quiz responses can be collected and used to take attendance. If attendance is not required, quizzes can be offered as all-or-none extra credit. We know how much students love extra credit! If the quiz is given at the very beginning of class, students will be encouraged to come on time. Some students will inevitably arrive late, but they will trickle in quietly without causing a disruption to the learning environment. If the quiz is given at the very end of class, students will be encouraged to refrain from packing up until the class is officially over. No more of that infernal shuffling as we get close to the end time of class!

I have been using in-class review quizzes for some time now, but in various ways and off and on in various classes. After completing this study and reviewing the relevant literature, I’m now convinced more than ever in their usefulness and in leaving them ungraded. I recommend making stress-free, ungraded in-class review quizzes part of your teaching tool kit!

References

Brown, P. C., Roediger, H. L., & McDaniel, M. A. (2014). Make it stick: The science of successful learning. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.

Khanna, M. M. (2015). Ungraded pop quizzes: Test-enhanced learning without all the anxiety. Teaching of Psychology, 42, 174-178. doi: 10.1177/0098628315573144

Nguyen, K., & McDaniel, M. A. (2015). Using quizzing to assist student learning in the classroom: The good, the bad, and the ugly. Teaching of Psychology, 42, 87-92. doi: 10.1177/0098628314562685

Paul, R. W., & Elder, L. (2000). Critical thinking: Basic theory and instructional structures handbook. Tomales, CA: Foundation for Critical Thinking.

Roediger, H. L., Smith, M. A., & Putnam, A. L. (2011). Ten benefits of testing and their applications to educational practice. In B. H. Ross (ed.), Psychology of learning and motivation. San Diego: Elsevier Academic Press.

Wickline, V. B., & Spektor, V. G. (2011). Practice (rather than graded) quizzes, with answers, may increase introductory psychology exam performance. Teaching of Psychology, 38, 98-101. doi: 10.1177/0098628311401580

Preparing Undergraduate Psychology Students for Jobs in Industry

(Past member) — Thu, 01 Mar 2018 14:28:06 GMT

Ronald G. Shapiro

Since most students who complete occasional psychology courses and even most undergraduate psychology majors will not enroll in graduate school in psychology or become psychology professionals, it is important to prepare these students for jobs in other fields. This article provides suggestions on how offering a non-majors psychology course in lieu of introduction to psychology for non-majors, making minor changes to other courses, providing different types of opportunities, and focusing recommendations can help to prepare students for jobs in different fields.

Non-Majors Psychology Course. One of the “facts” I learned in graduate school was that non-majors who earned an “A” in an introduction to psychology course, when asked to retake the final exam a year later did not pass it (Sidney L. Pressey study reported by David Hothersall in History and Systems Class, Ohio State University, circa 1977). This fact has had huge impact on my thinking. If people aren’t going to remember it, why teach it? One might argue that it is easier to relearn material. True, but your non-major may not be very likely to do this. Instead, I would recommend making a list of those items you really want non-majors to remember five years after the final exam and teach those materials and only those materials to undergraduate non-majors. Be thorough in teaching those materials. Teach them in a variety of contexts. One way to do this would be to offer a non-majors psychology course. Structure the non-majors course in ways that students might use the material (rather than as we structure the field with our specialties). Topics might focus on how to use psychology:

· In society (separating “fake news” and “alternative facts” from science);

· In marketing and advertisement;

· In working with others;

· In structuring a work environment;

· In understanding how a person develops from birth through death; or

· As a potential consumer of psychological services.

This structure would help students better use the materials, and see how what’s being taught might be helpful to them. In this restructured course remember to teach only what you want the students to remember 5 years after the final exam.

In Today’s Courses. Explain and have students complete numerous projects applying whatever you teach to real world solutions. If the material you teach is basic research that is so cutting-edge that there are no applications for it yet, have the students participate in projects which help them to think about how the materials might be used to change lives a year, a decade or a generation from now. This may require teaching less material, but in more depth. Show students how to become a “citizen expert” (if not a scientist) continuing to follow up on these projects throughout life.

Providing Advice to Students. Truly understand the student’s objectives (and the objectives of the person paying for the student’s education) before offering advice. Early in my career I would have advised a student that their primary objective in college is to learn all that they can from their academic departments. Everything else is secondary. For some students this is truly the case and I would recommend this today. For example, I have encouraged many high school students to meet faculty on their visits to college campuses and figure out how they can become involved in their research from freshman week onward. For other students, I would today argue that their best bet is to lead a very balanced life. The extracurricular activities, friendships formed, internships, and other experiences might be more valuable to them than what they learn in their academic departments. Encourage these students to take advantage of the numerous benefits provided while they are enrolled in a program (i.e. regular access to faculty, internship programs) that are harder to obtain without the student status. Recommend that students learn as much about business as possible through studying I/O psychology as well as completing courses in business. Also, recommend that students learn as much about technology as their interests allow, because more and more positions will require knowledge about technology

Producing a Resume. You may wish to help your students prepare their resume. Resumes for industry are vastly different than academic resumes or CVs. An industrial resume needs to ROAR (be Results Oriented and Relevant). In addition to being much shorter than academic CVs, they need to show a potential recruiter and a potential hiring manager why this applicant is better than the numerous others applying for the same job, in just seconds. A resume that shows real results, and that the applicant took the initiative to show how they would apply their knowledge and experiences to meet the specific employers’ needs are most beneficial. Keywords may be important for the recruiter. Showing real results (rather than job responsibilities) that will demonstrate to a hiring manager how those results translate into action is critical. In response to the frequently asked question “How long should a resume be?” The answer is long enough so that the person reading it becomes more enthusiastic about the candidate with every sentence, not bored with redundant or irrelevant detail. Providing the names of faculty members (e.g., worked in Professor Smith’s lab) are only important if the reader is likely to know or have heard of Professor Smith. References would not normally be included on a resume (to protect faculty from random calls), and the words “References Furnished Upon Request” should never be included on a resume because the point is obvious and also, it is somewhat insulting to the reader (saying “I do not trust you with the names of my references”).

Writing letters of recommendation. You are writing a letter of recommendation, not a performance evaluation. Your job, should you chose to accept it, is to sell the student to prospective employers by pointing out his or her strengths and why the potential employer will be better off with this student (as opposed to someone else) on their team. Before deciding if you can do this (unless you know you cannot up front) review the student’s resume and ask the student for a listing of content you might include in their letters. If you cannot use the content, explain to the student what you can do for them in a letter and suggest that there are probably others who can do a better job for them. Don’t “kill the student with faint praise.” Don’t discuss student’s weaknesses or areas for improvement.

The interview. Help your students to be able to communicate with potential colleagues, managers, people familiar with their work, and people not familiar with their work. In an industrial interview, applicants may meet with many people including recruiters, potential managers, and colleagues. Be sure your students can communicate their research work as well as other topics effectively. They should be able to explain their work (emphasizing their own contributions and differentiating them from the work of others) in one minute, five minutes, ten minutes or a full length presentation and have the listener engaged, excited about the topic, and seeing how the applicant would be the best fit in their organization. Please be sure to do this in the time allocated. One way to do this is to show how their research fits into the company’s mission and requirements. I might add the purpose of the interview is to determine if there is a good fit between the candidate and the position for both the applicant and the company. Accordingly, the applicant should be prepared to ask meaningful questions that will help them to decide if the position is a good fit for them explain how they will be a real asset to the specific company and demonstrate a thorough understanding of the company and enthusiasm for being part of it.

Decision Making. Businesses need to get products to market in a timely fashion. Thus, decision making is simply different than in academics. In academic basic research one might want to have a standard of p<.05, p<.01, p<.001, etc. In industry decision making may be made with absolutely no evidence (depending upon the industry). If an employee is 50.01% confident in a decision based upon knowledge and research they should be prepared to make a recommendation, as the recommendation is based upon some knowledge. Depending on the circumstances, they should also be prepared to qualify how confident they are in the decision. Rather than using p values for decision making, corporate executives may be more likely to use the 80/20 rule. That is, you can accomplish 80% of what you want to do with 20% of the effort. So, stop the process and go when you are 80% confident. You can help students understand this important distinction.

Deadlines. Deadlines are critical in business… far more so than in academics. They are real. No matter how thorough a contribution is, if it is late it may be totally useless. There may be some circumstances in which a late contribution may be acceptable, usually when an even more critical process has been delayed. The odds of this are minimal. The academic practice of deducting points for late work really doesn’t apply to much in business. A recommendation a day or a week late is not, for example 80% or 90% as good as a recommendation delivered in a timely fashion. A more realistic way to make decisions about accepting late work would be to shuffle a deck of cards after the late work is completed. Draw a card off the top. If it is, for example, an ace, accept the work. If not, don’t.

Oral Communications. Communicating in business is simply different than communicating in school. For example, I learned a very bad habit in graduate school. Ask questions to show you understand the work and to show defects in a presenter’s thinking. One of my best managers ever pointed this out to me. His recommendation was to: 1) only ask my questions if everyone else had completed theirs and my question had not been asked and 2) only ask questions for clarification. Otherwise, address the questions with the presenter off line. Be sure that your students understand this important distinction.

Written Communications. In academics we tend to write long journal articles explaining numerous details about our work. In industry, a brief executive summary is the more important means of communication. Executives trust that we know how to do our work and we may not need to demonstrate how we derived our results to them. When sending written communication, keep the receiver in mind and anticipate their schedule, mind frame, and organizational style (i.e. details versus quick summaries). Chances are that an executive will be very busy, rushed, and stretched thin, in which case having results and next steps up front will go a long way. Keep thorough lab notes. Depending on the corporate culture expected from your executive team, write the detailed report for backup or else skip it all together. In my first report on a study I did at a major corporation, two of us were presenting. My colleague was to present part 1. I was to present parts 2 and 3. Somehow, when he finished I went right into part 3. No one cared that the details were left out. Indeed the comments I received from my client were completely complimentary… that my department had learned how to present more concisely.

Research Involvement. Offer your students an opportunity to work with you on research. This will help them to develop great skills. Be sure that they can explain what the research was all about, their role in it, and how that research was better because of their participation (as opposed to that of another person). Be sure they can explain this very succinctly as well as in detail.

Perception of Degree Value. I’ve heard professionals, even a vice president in a major corporation, say “I was a psychology major and it was useless to me. It did not help me get a job.” That statement may be true. I did point out to her that while the degree may not have helped her secure her first position with the business, what she learned probably helped her to advance very quickly from an entry level position to a high level executive position. She agreed. My recommendation here is to clearly explain to your students what a psychology degree may and may not do for them in the business world, generally when they are considering the major. Explain this at the beginning of the semester for each course. Explain again, at the end of the semester, how the content should help them. In between assign work that will help the students to explain how the content might apply to the business world.

Seminars. Invite alumni who have gone into industry 1, 5, 10, and 20 years ago to offer seminars at your school showing how their degrees have helped them, and how the students might apply their degrees.

Internships. Completing one or two successful internships or coops can be extremely valuable for students as a learning experience. If they perform well, it may also be the key to having a great job waiting for them on graduation day.

In summary, I would say that a psychology major can be an extremely valuable tool to help a professional throughout their career if they make the most of it by becoming extremely involved with their department, research, course work, and internships. If they, on the other hand focus on taking mostly large lecture courses to meet the minimum degree requirements they will be minimizing the value of their degree.

Author note: I would like to thank Industrial Consultant Dr. Margarita Posada Cossuto for helpful comments.

Using Student-Generated Case Studies to Teach the Psychology of Disabilities

(Past member) — Thu, 01 Feb 2018 14:27:26 GMT

Jennifer A. Oliver (Rockhurst University)

The use of case studies is a common active learning strategy employed in psychology. Case learning is useful for developing critical-thinking skills (Krain, 2010), and for increasing students’ motivation and interest in course material (McManus, 1986a; McManus, 1986b). Researchers have described many positive outcomes of using case studies. These include helping abstract theoretical information become concrete, facilitating understanding; reinforcing course concepts as students analyze, infer, and examine relationships (Graham & Cline, 1980); and integrating students’ learning as they incorporate theory into practice and make practice integral to theory (McDade, 1995).

But most of the work examining the use of case studies uses pre-written cases. While I wanted to use cases in my Psychology of Disability course, the only cases that I could find were focused either on abnormal psychology or on special education, and neither area was a good fit for this course. So, I decided to have students write their own cases. Few studies have examined having students write their own cases. Successful application of student-generated case studies has been used at both the undergraduate level in business and science, as well as in medical training (Yurco, 2014). In fact, Yurco reported that when students created their own cases, they developed greater confidence, ownership of the learning process, a deeper understanding of the material, and improved critical thinking skills in an introductory neurobiology course. McManus (1986b) reported that having student groups compose a problem-focused case and generate potential solutions to the problem in the case assisted students in consolidating course concepts in an adolescent psychology course.

In this essay, I describe an applied project that I use in my undergraduate Psychology of Disabilities course, along with information on students’ performance and their views of the project. The Psychology of Disabilities is a 4000-level class (junior and senior level). All of our 4000-level courses require an assignment that involves an integrated literature review but I also wanted to incorporate some application into the course at a broader level than just using exam questions.

The Project

In the Psychology of Disabilities course, students chose a disability and wrote their own case study of an individual with that particular disability. The project included:

• An integrative literature review (minimum of 4 double-spaced pages) describing the disability, including psychological and behavioral characteristics, prevalence rate, developmental changes as an individual with the disability moves from childhood to adolescence to adulthood, (possible) causes of the disability, and at least three sociocultural factors chosen from: race/ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and differences among regions of the world. Students had to cite at least eight credible academic sources, with at least two of the sources being empirical journal articles. They were allowed to use one internet source that summarizes information on the disability; however that source had to be a credible source, written by individuals who are professionals and knowledgeable about the disability. I provided students with examples of sources that would both be acceptable and not acceptable. Students turned in rough drafts of this section at midterm for feedback before the final project was due at the end of the semester.

• A case study of a fictional individual with that disability at two contrasting ages (minimum of 1 full page, single-spaced per age). In keeping with the developmental focus of the class, students could use any ages between preschool and young adulthood (up through the early-20s). In their case study, students needed to apply the characteristics, described in the literature review, that an individual with that disability would exhibit at the chosen ages, and include either a behavioral interaction and/or a verbal interaction between the individual and at least one other person

• A complete description of two possible interventions/treatments that would be appropriate for their fictional individual, including the effectiveness of each intervention/treatment. In addition, students discussed which age from their case each intervention/treatment would be most appropriate for and why.

An example of a case study and two additional completed projects were available for the students to use as models.

Student Performance

In order to determine how well students performed on the assignment, I evaluated the grades on each section of the assignment from 56 students (28 each, in Spring 2014 and in Spring 2015). The percentages of grades for each area of the assignment were as follows:

	Case Study	Literature Review	Treatment/Intervention
A	58.9	60.7	51.8
B	32.2	17.9	30.3
C	5.4	16.0	12.5
Below C	3.5	5.4	5.4

Overall, students performed well on all three areas of the assignment, with at least 78% earning an A or B on each portion. Over 90% of the students did quite well on the case study portion. Common areas where students missed points were not providing an example of behavioral and/or verbal interactions between the individual and another person, not including all of the characteristics described in the literature review in the case, or not meeting the length requirement. A higher percentage of students received a C or lower on the literature review portion than on the other two sections of the project, which was surprising since they received feedback on a previous draft of this section of the project. Common difficulties on the literature review included not fully describing the disability, choosing inappropriate sources (especially an over-reliance on internet sources), and lack of integration of information from multiple sources. In addition, students were asked to describe three sociocultural factors chosen from: race/ethnicity, gender, socioeconomic status, and differences among regions of the world; students often ignored the actual sociocultural factor choices given in the assignment and came up with their own factors. This was the first psychology course that required a writing assignment this in-depth for some students, which may explain the lower scores on this section. A few students did not incorporate feedback that was provided on their draft. If students lost points on the treatment/intervention section, it was typically because they either did not fully describe the treatment/intervention or failed to discuss the effectiveness of the treatment/intervention. A few students did not discuss how the treatments/interventions related to the case study portion of the assignment.

I also wanted to assess students’ views of the project. After students had turned in their final project, they completed a 3-item anonymous rating of the project. Each question was rated on a 5-point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree, 5= strongly agree). Students’ average ratings were quite high:

• Completing the case study project increased my understanding of disabilities, M= 4.32 (sd=.69, range 3-5)

• The case study project was a useful way to help me learn the class material, M= 4.29 (s.=.73, range 3-5)

• I rate the project as interesting, M=4.38 (sd =.62, range 3-5)

Students’ anonymous ratings for the case study project were quite high, with the lowest rating for all three questions as neutral. Thus, this project may be one way to get students more actively engaged in learning about disabilities. In addition to the students’ high ratings of the project, there were numerous unsolicited comments on the course evaluations that they enjoyed the project and it helped them learn to apply course material.

I was also interested in whether completing a big application project was related to student performance on application-based material on the exams. There are three exams in the course. Each exam has nine application-based multiple-choice questions. I give Exam 1 before students have completed any of the project. I give Exam 2 after students have completed a draft of the literature review but before they have written the case study portion. Students take Exam 3 after they have completed the final project. I looked at these application-based multiple-choice questions on each exam to see if there was improvement after completing the case study.

	Average % correct
Exam 1	59.2
Exam 2	60.4
Exam 3	81.6

Students, on average, performed better on the application-based multiple-choice questions after completing the case study. While there was no difference between scores on Exams 1 and 2, t(8) = -1.976, p=.084, there were significant differences between performance on Exam 1 and Exam 3, t(8) = -3.086, p=.015 and Exam 2 and Exam 3, t(8) = -3.117, p=.014.

Performance on the application-based multiple-choice questions on the exams improved after completion of the case study project. Students may be getting better at application-based multiple-questions with repeated practice on the exams but completing the case study project may have also helped in learning to apply information.

Suggestions for Using the Project in Other Psychology Courses

While I designed this project for a specific course, it could easily be adapted for use in other Psychology classes, either with or without a literature review, such as:

· Abnormal Psychology–students pick (or are assigned) a psychiatric disorder and create a fictional individual with that disorder, describing the symptoms specific to the characteristics (age, race/ethnicity, etc.) of the individual. Students could also discuss a specific theoretical orientation toward treatment.
· Community Psychology–have students create a case about an individual, demonstrating how that individual is connected to his/her environments and how specific problems within the individual’s community have an impact the individual.
· Developmental Psychology–have students develop a fictional individual and describe how that individual changes while passing through the different developmental time periods. For example, in a child psychology class, what that individual looks like at early childhood compared to middle childhood. Or students could use one developmental period (e.g., adolescence) and describe how physical, cognitive, and social-emotional developmental interacts at that age for that particular individual.
· Health Psychology–students could create a case study about an individual with a specific health issue, discussing how the individual adjusts and copes with the issue, what behaviors could protect the individual’s health, what behaviors harm the individual’s health, and how those behaviors could be changed.
Concluding Thoughts

I have found this project to be a fun, engaging way to help students learn about disabilities. It demonstrates that the majority of students can apply information and describe how characteristics of disabilities can change developmentally. In addition, students appear to enjoy the assignment and it actually is more fun to read and grade than traditional literature reviews.

References

Graham, P.T, & Cline, P.C. (1980). The case method: A basic teaching approach. Theory into Practice, 19(2), 112–116.

Krain, M. (2010). The effects of different types of case learning on student engagement. International Studies Perspectives, 11, 291-308.

McDade, S.A. (1995). Case study pedagogy to advance critical thinking. Teaching of Psychology, 22(1), 9-10.

McManus, J.L. (1986a). “Live” case study/journal record in adolescent psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 13(2), 70-74.

McManus, J.L. (1986b). Student composed case study in adolescent psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 13(2), 92-93.

Yurco, P. (2014). Student-generated cases: Giving students more ownership in the learning process. Journal of College Science Teaching, 43(3), 54-58

Building Note-Taking Skills in the Millennial Student: Scaffolding Frameworks of Knowledge in College Curricula

(Past member) — Mon, 15 Jan 2018 21:43:53 GMT

Harwood, E.A., & Marsano, M. (Rivier University)

Teaching in the age of millennial students is a challenge that should be embraced by all faculty, but what does this entail? Present day students have grown-up alongside technology as a basis for communication and understanding. Termed “digital natives” by Marc Prensky (2001), millennial students spend a great deal of time communicating through technology and are used to having information at their fingertips. Sending an average of 100 texts a day (Lenhart, 2012), the millennial student expects a near immediate response to comments, and can easily find the answer to a question by asking Google. Because millennials have a completely different experience with information than previous generations, especially the ease with which it can be accessed, students may wonder why we don’t instantly respond to email or provide our lecture notes before class (van der Meer, 2012). Taking notes may seem archaic and pointless if material is always available. Nevertheless, teaching students the skills necessary to navigate through a surplus of information and having them recognize the importance of quality over quantity are now essential components of college curricula.

How many times have your students asked you, “Is this going to be on the test?” Although this may seem an annoying question, students may be searching for clues about the essential concepts of the class. Main points that are crystal clear to us may not be as clear to our students (van der Meer, 2012). As experts in our field, we have already created our own organizational frameworks for the concepts we teach. We have formed deep, complex connections that have helped us master the material and make it seem easy for us to understand, while it may remain difficult for our students (Ambrose, Bridges, DiPietro, Lorett, & Norman, 2010). How can we scaffold our “expert” frameworks for our students to build their own connections among course concepts and past experiences? In this essay, we describe several teaching techniques for creating these frameworks, from the way we encourage effective note-taking to the way we speak and incorporate multimedia.

Why do students struggle with note-taking? Effective note-taking requires extensive cognitive resources, especially working memory capacity (Stefanou, Hoffman, & Vielee, 2008). Listening to the professor while simultaneously writing notes is difficult for many students (van der Meer, 2012). Differences in working memory resources may put some students at a distinct disadvantage depending on the types of notes they take (Bui, Myerson & Hale, 2013). Students with documented and undocumented learning disabilities may also face impediments. If the cognitive load is too great, students may not be able to contextualize or personalize the notes (Stefanou et al., 2008). Some may furiously write down everything you say, while others may copy down only what’s on the PowerPoint slides. Others may just sit back and wait until you put the slides online.

Nevertheless, writing an idea down can help with long-term retention (Bui et al., 2013). Writing about a concept necessitates active recall and allows the formulation of clearer thoughts and more connections (Bui et al., 2013). Is it better to attempt to transcribe a lecture or take more condensed, structured notes? While transcription of lectures by computer may help initially with the recording of more notes and immediate recall of facts, taking organized notes shows more durable retention in a 24-hour delay condition (Bui et al., 2013). Although, when students are allowed to study their transcribed lectures, recall is superior, especially for those with lower working memory capabilities (with a 24-hour delay involving transcription of an 11-minute lecture) (Bui et al., 2013). The attention necessary to transcribe a full lecture was not tested, however this research (Bui et al., 2013) once again reminds us that students differ in their capabilities, and what works for one may not work for another.

Brief, targeted interventions can improve note-taking. Nakayama, Mutsuura and Yamamoto (2016) provided students with two short instructions, once at the beginning and again at the mid-point of a course, on note-taking techniques, which included examples of good notes. This instruction increased student metacognition with regards to note-taking and improved the quality of notes over the course of the semester. Deliberately reviewing and restructuring notes can significantly improve grades as well (Cohen, Kim, Tan & Winkelmes, 2013). For example, outlining, summarizing, and drawing connections between different concepts requires active engagement and leads to better test performances than review alone (Cohen et al., 2013).

Another technique for note-taking that utilizes scaffolding is directed notes (Harwood, 2016). Similar to a review guide for an exam, directed notes act as a review guide for that day’s class. Given at the beginning of the class period, directed notes consist of a list of questions and activities about that day’s topics with plenty of space for students to write in their answers. The following are examples from a few different courses:

1.      Summarize how neurons communicate.                          Action Potential
       How is it like firing a gun?                    Absolute Refractory Period
       Use the terms to the side in your summary                                 Threshold
                                                                                         All or None Response

2. Now that we’ve covered the functions of the different brain structures, create your own concept map using your notes

3. What advice would you give our aging population given what you know about adult development?

4. Describe how each of the following individuals expanded our understanding of attachment.

Name Contributions

John Bowlby

Harry Harlow

Konrad Lorenz Imprinting
Critical Period

Mary Ainsworth Strange Situation Task

5. Lambert (1992) proposed 4 therapeutic factors that lead to client improvement. These are

The Big Four Variance Examples

1. Client/Extra Therapeutic Factors

2. Therapeutic Alliance

3. Placebo, Hope, Expectancy

4. Therapeutic Techniques

6. Write down your immediate reactions to this individual’s story of heroin addiction.

As you can see, directed notes point students towards important concepts, and assist students in creating their own examples and applying the material. When provided guidelines, but not explicit notes, the student is encouraged to form meaningful connections on the main ideas identified by the professor. Some important guidelines to keep in mind when creating directed notes for your course are to include different types of questions and response formats, leave plenty of space for students to write, and ensure that directed notes are assimilated into the course in some way, whether it be group work or as a test review. Psychology is so pertinent to everyday life that it is ripe with ways to make the material personally meaningful (“If you had to take an anti-depressant, which one would you take and why?”). Take advantage of this and further students’ critical thinking and interest in the field.

While professors may be tempted to think that directed notes and guided notes are synonymous, there is a distinction between the two. Guided notes are an alternative to traditional PowerPoint slides with information missing to encourage attendance (Barbetta & Skaruppa, 1995). Results among the college population are mixed on whether guided notes provide advantages above and beyond complete PowerPoint slides on test performance (Neef, McCord & Ferreri, 2006). Guided notes may be effective in demonstrating information, but they may fail to encourage students to make connections beyond what’s on the slides.

Note-taking techniques are one way that scaffolding can be achieved in the classroom, allowing students to organize and detail their thoughts in written form. In addition the presentation of information to students provides another opportunity for framing information. For example, one can provide organizational cues during class, such as using explicit language that differentiates main points (“Carl Rogers identified 3 core conditions for a successful therapeutic relationship. The first is unconditional positive regard…”). Further, one can provide transitional language that encourages students to refocus on a new idea and cues the type of notes to take and their organization (“Now that we understand the structure of a neuron, let’s discuss how neurons communicate” (Titsworth, 2004). We can also encourage students to elaborate beyond what we have explicitly covered since the more information students add to their notes, the higher their scores on applied questions (Stefanou et al.,2008). For example, after explaining a concept or definition, I (Harwood) give students a few moments to write down their own examples (“Give an example of an empathic response to a friend’s problem”) and then have several share with the class. Five-minute writing prompts on a class topic can also foster generative notes and class conversation (“Based on what we’ve covered so far, why do you think heroin is so hard to quit?”).

Using technology as a tool for creating conceptual frameworks in a course can also be effective with millennial students. PowerPoint slides are a possible method for scaffolding information and cuing students on how to organize their notes (Stefanou et al., 2008). With the integration of technology starting in k-12 schools (Ruggiero & Mong, 2015), students prefer, and may even expect PowerPoint slides (Landrum, 2010). While students may want these slides before class (Babb & Ross, 2009; Landrum, 2010) and it may increase class participation for those who typically participate (Babb & Ross, 2009), it does not appear to aid in test performance (Babb & Ross, 2009), final grades (Bowman, 2009), or the addition of new ideas to one’s notes (Stefanou et al., 2008). We find that for many students, providing slides before class can decrease interest and stunt conversation. My (Harwood) compromise is to provide slides after we have finished the chapter for students to fill any gaps in their notes.

Finding the right balance between incorporating PowerPoint or other presentation media into a lecture while meeting students’ needs is a necessary consideration during lesson planning. Some believe that PowerPoint slides may condense the material too much, acting as “CliffsNotes” for the class, or preventing “big picture” thinking with its linear presentation (Kirova, Massing, Prochner, & Cleghorn, 2016). It may be more effective to think of multimedia presentation technology as an extension of conveying main points and transitional language, rather than being the sole conveyor of information during a lecture. As much as we tend to lump students into the group of “millennials,” it is important to recognize their individual learning capacities and the need for a variety of teaching techniques.

If you choose to use PowerPoint as a scaffolding technique, there are some common mistakes to avoid. First, don’t use your slides as “cue cards” (Gardner & Aleksejuniene, 2011). They should be made with the students in mind, rather than the instructor. When information is read off a slide, it decreases cognitive understanding by overloading working memory and inhibiting students’ opportunities to create connections. In addition, students tend to lose interest quickly Second, don’t overburden the slides with text (Gardner & Aleksejuniene, 2011; Stefanou et al., 2008). Providing too much information on a slide may result in students copying information rather than recording their own thoughts (Stefanou et al., 2008). In limiting the amount written on the slides, students are given the opportunity to reason through information, which can promote generative learning. Third, integrating images with verbal descriptions is more effective for learning than text alone (Gardner & Aleksejuniene, 2011). Pictures really can say a 1000 words! Seeing the devastating physical effects of methamphetamine use in a series of mug shots is much more powerful than reading about it or hearing a recitation of symptoms from the instructor. And fourth, incorporate video clips and other media that naturally appeal to the millennial student (Garder & Aleksejuniene, 2011). Identifying the symptoms of cocaine abuse from a movie scene is an excellent way to elicit interest from students. Further seize the teachable moment by explicitly discussing how these images and clips relate to course concepts (“What properties of methamphetamine lead to these physical changes” or “What symptoms are the characters showing that indicate stimulant use”). Students may not automatically see these connections on their own.

PowerPoint slides, organizational cues, and transitional language all aid students in creating their own class notes. Note-taking is a skill often overlooked by college educators who assume their students already know how to do it. In a traditional lecture format, only a small amount of content is accurately captured in student notes (Kiewra, 1985). Considered more than just a “recording technique” (van der Meer, 2012, p. 13), taking notes and reviewing them helps students reconstruct what they have learned and makes it more personally meaningful. This actively engages the student with the material and increases retention (Bohay, Blakely, Tamplin, & Radvanksy, 2011; Cohen et al., 2013; Kobayashi, 2006). Note-taking is a skill that will follow students long after they have left the classroom, giving them an advantage in the workplace by preventing mistakes and saving time.

Regardless of the format an instructor chooses to use, it is important to remember that millennial students will benefit from exemplified note-taking and scaffolded frameworks of knowledge. Considering the technology-centered background of today’s millennial student, we would be wise to incorporate media presentations in the classroom because they garner more attention. However, this must be tempered with the understanding that our main focus must be on generative learning and helping students make meaningful connections. Inspired teaching is more than content delivery. It is student-centered and focuses on cultivating skills that lead to a successful life.

References

Ambrose, S.H., Bridges, M.W., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M.C., & Norman, M.K. (2010). How learning works: 7 research-based principles for smart teaching. San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Babb, K.A., & Ross, C. (2009). The timing of online lecture slide availability and its effect on attendance, participation and exam performance. Computers & Education, 52, 868-881. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2008.12.009

Barbetta, P.M., & Skaruppa, C.L. (1995). Looking for a way to improve your behavior analysis lectures? Try guided notes. The Behavior Analyst, 18(1), 155-160.

Bohay, M., Blakely, D. P., Tamplin, A. K., & Radvansky, G. A. (2011). Note taking, review, memory, and comprehension. American Journal of Psychology, 124(1), 63-73. doi: 10.5406/amerjpsyc.124.1.0063

Bowman, L. L. (2009). Does posting PowerPoint presentations on WebCT affect class performance or attendance? Journal of Instructional Psychology, 36(2), 104-107.

Bui, D.C., Myerson, J., & Hale, S. (2013). Note-taking with computers: Exploring alternative strategies for improved recall. Journal of Educational Psychology, 105(2), 299-309. doi: 10.1037/a0030367

Cohen, D. D., Kim, E., Tan, J., & Winkelmes, M. (2013). A note-restructuring intervention increases students’ exam scores. College Teaching, 61(3), 95-99. doi: 10.1080/87567555.2013.793168

Gardner, K., & Aleksejuniene, J. (2011). PowerPoint and learning theories: Reaching out to the millennials. Transformative Dialogues: Teaching & Learning Journal, 5(1), 1-11.

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Kirova, A., Massing, C., Prochner, L., & Cleghorn, A. (2016). Shaping the 'habits of mind' of diverse learners in early childhood teacher education programs through PowerPoint: An illustrative case. Journal of Pedagogy, 7(1), 59-78. doi: 10.1515/jped-2016-0004

Kobayashi, K. (2006). Combined effects of note‐taking/‐reviewing on learning and the enhancement through interventions: A meta‐analytic review, Educational Psychology: An International Journal of Experimental Educational Psychology, 26(3), 459-477. doi: 10.1080/01443410500342070

Landrum, R. E. (2010). Faculty and student perceptions of providing instructor lecture notes to students: Match or mismatch? Journal of Instructional Psychology, 37(3), 216-221. Retrieved from http://www.projectinnovation.biz/jip_2006.html.

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Nakayama, M., Mutsuura, K., & Yamamoto, H. (2016). Students’ reflections on their learning and note-taking activities in a blended learning course. The Electronic Journal of eLearning, 14(1), 43-53.

Neef, N.A., McCord, B.E., & Ferreri, S. J. (2006). Effects of guided notes versus completed notes during lectures on college students’ quiz performance. Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis, 39(1), 123-130. doi: 10.1901/jaba.2006.94-04

Prensky, M. (2001). Digital natives, digital immigrants. On the Horizon, 9(5), 1-6.

Ruggiero, D., & Mong, C.J. (2015). The teacher technology integration experience: Practice and reflection in the classroom. Journal of Information Technology Education: Research, 14, 161-178

Stefanou, C., Hoffman, L., & Vielee, N. (2008). Note-taking in the college classroom as evidence of generative learning. Learning Environment Research, 11, 1-17. doi: 10.1007/s10984-007-9033-0

Titsworth, B. S. (2004). Students' notetaking: The effects of teacher immediacy and clarity. Communication Education, 53(4), 305-320.

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Help Sheet Content Predicts Test Performance

(Past member) — Mon, 18 Dec 2017 21:01:36 GMT

Help Sheet Content Predicts Test Performance

Mark R. Ludorf and Sarah O. Clark
Stephen F. Austin State University

Readers of E-xcellence in Teaching know the importance of finding the best teaching methods and techniques to reach students. Although instructors rightfully seek to improve their teaching to enhance student learning, often times too much focus is placed on enhancing “input” and not enough focus is placed on enhancing the fidelity of “output”. That is, instructors should explore both the methods to make them better teachers, but also consider innovative methods to create better measurements of what students have learned.

Professors regularly confront the challenge of teaching to a student population with diverse levels of academic ability. To address such diverse ability instructors have implemented various pedagogical methods, many of which are time consuming and tedious. One method instructors have used to address diverse learning abilities is to allow students to access information during a test. Some instructors limit the amount of information that is accessible (e.g., index card or standard sheet of paper), while other instructors allow access to an unlimited amount of information (i.e., “open book”).

Ludorf (1994), allowed students to select the amount information they could access on each of five statistics tests. Results showed significantly higher average test performance (72% versus 62%) when less information was accessed than when more information was accessed; a result consistent with previous results (Boniface, 1985)

During the last 3 decades numerous researchers (e.g., Dorsel & Cundiff, 1979) have explored the role of help sheets (aka cheat sheet or crib sheet) and how the use of help sheets is related to test performance (Dickson & Bauer, 2008; Dickson & Miller, 2005; Hindman, 1980; Visco, Swaminathan, Zagumny & Anthony, 2007; Whitley, 1996), learning (Dickson & Bauer, 2008; Funk & Dickson, 2011) and anxiety reduction (e.g., Drake, Freed, and Hunter, 1998; Erbe, 2007; Trigwell, 1987). Overall the results have been mixed regarding help sheet use and the variables investigated.

One aspect of help sheets that has received little attention is the relationship between the content of a help sheet and test performance. Most of the research cited above examined the relationship between test performance and whether or not a student used a help sheet. Only a few studies (Dickson & Miller, 2006; Gharib, Phillips, & Mathew, 2012; Visco, et al., 2007) have explored how the specific content of a help sheet is related to performance.

Dickson and Miller (2006) found significantly higher test performance when students used an instructor provided help sheet compared to a student provided help sheet. However, the result may be confounded as help sheet condition may have varied systematically with the amount of studying students did. Visco et al. (2007), examined student generated help sheets and concluded that students likely need additional direction on what content to include on a help sheet in order to enhance performance. Finally, Gharib et al. (2012) examined the quality of students’ help sheets and found a reliable and positive relationship between the quality of the help sheet content and test performance; where a quality measure was obtained by rating a help sheet for organization and amount of detail.

To summarize the relevant research, the use of help sheets is not reliably or consistently related to student performance, learning, or anxiety levels. Moreover, help sheet quality appears to vary across students and such variation may explain the body of results. Thus, help sheet content should be examined more systematically.

The current study provided a systematic exploration to determine whether characteristics of the help sheet content (e.g., overall quality, inclusion of process information, density of information, etc) were related to test performance. Results of the study may be used to provide students guidance (Visco et al., 2007) when constructing a help sheet in order to enhance performance.

Method

Participants

Participants (N = 21) were students enrolled in a required junior level psychological statistics course. Other sections of the course were taught by different instructors; students selected to enroll in this section unaware of the assessment that would be conducted. A majority of the participants were women. No other demographic information was collected.

Materials

Students created a one-page 8.5 × 11 in. [21.6 × 28 cm] help sheet to use on each test. The help sheet could contain any information a student wanted to include and both sides of the sheet could be used. Students were informed that help sheets would be collected. Both sides of each help sheet were scanned to create an electronic copy. All help sheets were returned when the tests were returned.

Procedures

Students were required to construct a help sheet for each test, though there was no requirement to use the help sheet. Based on informal observation during the test, all students appeared to use the help sheet to some degree.

Tests in the statistics course were all problem based and were graded on a 100 point scale. Student help sheets were collected, scanned, and rated by two raters on the variables of interest below. Both help sheet raters were blind to students’ test performance at the time that the ratings were made.

Variables of interest. Help sheets were evaluated on the variables of Overall Quality (4 – 0, with 4 being the highest quality); Verbal Process information (i.e., instructions) (1 <very informational> – 3 <neutral> – 5 <not very informational> ), Numeric Process information (i.e., solved problems) (1 <very informational> – 3 <neutral> – 5 <not very informational> ), Density of the information (as rated in deciles – 10 – 100%), Organization of information (1 <very organized> – 3 <neutral> – 5 <very unorganized> ), use of Color (present or absent) and Submission Order (ordinal position when the test was submitted).

Results

Analyses

The analyses were based on students’ help sheets and test performance from a single test. Interrater rater reliability was computed for the two raters across the scales described above. Interrater reliability ranged from moderate to high, .521(Organization) to .978 (Density).

Help sheet ratings for the two raters were averaged and then regressed against students’ test scores to determine which characteristics of help sheet predicted tested performance. Results showed that higher quality help sheets predicted higher test performance (b = 33.20, p < .001) as did lower density of information (b = -.35, p = .05). Moreover, higher verbal process scores were associated with lower test performance (b = 13.14, p < .01). None of the other variables were related to performance (p > .05).

Discussion, Conclusion and Recommendations

Results of the preliminary analyses suggest that it is not enough just to consider whether a student has access to a help sheet or not, but rather a careful examination of the help sheet content is required. Similar to Gharib et al. (2012), overall quality of the help sheet was found to be a very important characteristic of the help sheet. As overall quality increased, test scores also increased.

Density of information was also significantly related to performance. Although not the strongest effect, it appears that having less information on the help sheet predicted higher performance. Such a pattern is consistent with previous research (Visco et al., 2007) which may indicated that density of information is a proxy for learning in an inverse direction. That is, students who have a robust understanding of the material do not need to include as much information on the sheet and create a less dense help sheet. Conversely, students who do not have a robust understanding of the material must include as much information as possible to compensate for the lack of understanding, thereby creating a high density help sheet.

One surprising finding was that students who included more verbal process information, which included information like instructions on how to perform some processes, scored lower than those students who included less of this information. Similar to the density argument above, it could be the case that students who included more verbal process information did so because they were not comfortable completing such problems without help sheet information and so they included more verbal process information on their help sheets.

Finally, in examining the help sheet research there are two notable issues. First, help sheets do not facilitate student performance in courses involving mostly content knowledge including abnormal psychology (Hindman, 1980), developmental psychology (Dickson and Miller, 2005 and 2006), or social psychology (Whitley. 1996). However, when a course includes more process than content knowledge, as in the current course or other studies including statistics (Ludorf, 1994, Philips, et al., 2012) or engineering (Visco et al., 2007), students’ test performance appears to be related to help sheet content. Second, taking into account the research showing that content of a help sheet is related to test performance, we join Visco and colleagues in calling for the need of instructors to become more involved with help sheet construction as a way to provide students of all abilities a high quality help sheet.

References

Boniface, D. (1985). Candidates’ use of notes and textbooks during an open-book examination. Educational Research, 27(3), 201-209.

Dickson, K. L., & Bauer, J. (2008). Do students learn course material during crib card construction? Teaching of Psychology, 35, 117-120.

Dickson, K. L., & Miller, M. D. (2005). Authorized crib cards do not improve exam performance. Teaching of Psychology, 32, 230–232.

Dickson, K. L., & Miller, M. D. (2006). Effect of crib card construction and use on exam performance. Teaching of Psychology, 33, 39–40.

Dorsel, T. N., & Cundiff, G. W. (1979). The cheat-sheet: Efficient coding device or indispensable crutch? Journal of Experimental Education, 48, 39–42.

Drake, V. K., Freed, P., & Hunter, J. M. (1998). Crib sheets or security blankets? Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 19, 291–300.

Erbe, B. (2007). Reducing test anxiety while increasing learning – The cheat sheet. College Teaching, 55(3), 96-97.

Funk, S. C., & Dickson, K. L. (2011). Crib card use during tests: Helpful or a crutch? Teaching of Psychology, 38, 114-117.

Gharib, A., Phillips, W., & Mathew, N. (2012). Cheat Sheet or Open-Book? A Comparison of the Effects of Exam Types on Performance, Retention, and Anxiety. Psychology Research, 2(8), 469-478

Hindman, C. D. (1980). Crib notes in the classroom: Cheaters never win. Teaching of Psychology, 7, 166–168.

Ludorf, M. R. (1994). Student selected testing: A more sensitive evaluation of learning. Paper presented to the American Psychological Society Institute on The Teaching of Psychology, Washington, DC.

Trigwell, K. (1987). The crib card examination system. Assessment and Evaluation in Higher Education, 12, 56–65.

Visco, D., Swaminathan, S., Zagumny, L, & Anthony, H. (2007). AC 2007-621: Interpreting Student-Constructed Study Guides. ASEE Annual Meeting and Exposition Proceedings, Honolulu, HI.

Whitley, B. E., Jr. (1996). Does “cheating” help? The effect of using authorized crib notes during examinations. College Student Journal, 30, 489–493.

Author Notes

Mark Ludorf is a Cognitive psychologist who joined the faculty at Stephen F. Austin State University(SFA) in the fall of 1990 and is currently a Full Professor of Psychology. He has served in university wide administrative positions at two universities (SFA and Oakland University in Rochester, MI). He was also an American Council on Education (ACE) Fellow in Academic Administration. Ludorf has been active in the use technology in higher education. He has taught online since 2001 and developed several online courses. His other academic interests are in leadership and study abroad. Ludorf currently serves as Senior Editor of the Journal of Leadership Studies. He has also offered numerous study abroad programs in Italy. At SFA Ludorf has been recognized as the Alumni Distinguished Professor and was awarded the SFA Foundation Faculty Achievement Award.

Sara Clark was an undergraduate teaching assistant in statistics at Stephen F. Austin State University. She completed her Bachelor’s degree in Psychology at SFA. She was also the 2013 recipient of the Jeff and Jackie Badders Award which is given to the top graduating senior psychology major.

Mindfulness and Meditation in Psychology Courses

(Past member) — Mon, 04 Dec 2017 13:18:04 GMT

Mindfulness and Meditation in Psychology Courses

Jennifer A. McCabe & Dara G. Friedman-Wheeler

Goucher College

As part of a college-wide “theme semester” on mindfulness in spring 2016, we incorporated mindfulness into four psychology classes. Here we share our experiences with regard to course design, assignments and activities, and student feedback. For instructors who are considering including mindfulness and/or meditation in psychology courses, we conclude with a reflection and overall assessment of what went well and what could be modified for the future, integrated with the results of our research on mindfulness in the college classroom.

Defining Mindfulness and Its Relevance to Education

A prominent definition of mindfulness in contemporary psychology is “paying attention… on purpose, in the present moment, and non-judgmentally” (Kabat-Zinn, 1994, p. 4). Mindfulness has received much attention recently, in the research literature and elsewhere (for an overview, see Curtiss & Hofmann, 2017). Studies have suggested benefits of mindfulness to physical health (e.g., pre-hypertension; Hughes et al., 2013), mental health (e.g., subjective well-being; Sedlmeier et al., 2012), and cognitive performance (e.g., working memory; Mrazrek, Franklin, Phillips, Baird, & Schooler, 2013).

Increasingly, researchers are studying mindfulness activities in elementary and secondary schools (e.g., Black & Fernando, 2014; Britton et al., 2014; Mindful Schools, 2017). Research is just beginning to emerge on the effects of mindfulness in the college classroom (e.g., Helber, Zook, & Immergut, 2012; Ramsburg & Youmans, 2014).

In the next two sections, each author provides a first-person narrative of her experiences integrating mindfulness into psychology courses.

Cognitive Psychology Courses (JM)

I approached this semester with enthusiasm about mindfulness, but a lack of experience. I decided to commit to a regular practice of mindfulness exercises (10 minutes daily) using Headspace (https://www.headspace.com/), which helped bring a degree of authenticity (and confidence) to my courses, and also personal benefit in terms of well-being and focus.

In integrating mindfulness into Cognitive Psychology, a mid-level undergraduate course, I added a section that defined mindfulness to my syllabus, connected mindfulness to other topics in the course (e.g., perception, attention, memory, decision-making), and invited students to engage in meaningful study and practice of mindfulness throughout the semester. I added a course learning objective connecting mindfulness to metacognition: “Improve your metacognitive skills (knowing what you know, learning how to learn), through traditional book learning and through mindful practice and reflection.” (Syllabi for courses discussed in this essay are available by request.)

On the first day of class, I asked students questions about mindfulness to gauge pre-existing knowledge and practice, before their first mindful meditation exercise (Day 1 of Headspace). At least once per week, class included 5-10 minutes of guided mindfulness exercises. To prepare students, I asked them to arrive on time, to listen to instructions, and to be still and quiet during the meditation time. I assured them that it was okay not to engage in meditation. I emphasized that in addition to possible personal benefits, the exercises might provide insight into research we would read on mindfulness and cognition.

Throughout the semester, I chose short guided exercises for class use, including several from the UCLA Mindful Awareness Research Center (http://marc.ucla.edu/body.cfm?id=22) and Mindfulness for Teens (http://mindfulnessforteens.com/guided-meditations/). Some were sitting exercises and some were standing; some had longer periods of silence and some were narrated throughout. Whenever possible, I connected the mindfulness activity to the course topic (e.g., body scan meditation for Attention; guided visualization for Visual Imagery). One day we went outside and I guided students through an exercise to focus on aspects of the environment (e.g., colors, shapes, movement; from a training session with Dr. Philippe Goldin).

Regarding assessment, I revised my existing article summary and reflection assignment to focus on research that related mindfulness/meditation to course topics. For each article, students completed this form and engaged in group discussions during class. I quickly discovered that there were not many published articles about the impact of mindfulness on cognition that were appropriate for students in a mid-level undergraduate course.

For the topics Perception and Attention, I assigned half the students an article about enhancing visuospatial processing using varieties of meditation (Kozhevnikov, Louchakova, Josipovic, & Motes, 2009), and the other half an article about improvements in perceptual discrimination and sustained attention following meditation training (MacLean et al., 2010). With respect to Memory, I assigned half an article about how brief mindfulness training can improve verbal GRE performance as mediated by enhancing working memory (Mrazek et al., 2013), and the other half read about increases in false memory after meditation (Wilson, Mickes, Stolarz-Fantino, Evrard, & Fantino, 2015). For the final topics in the course, Reasoning and Decision-Making, students read an article about reductions in the sunk-cost bias after meditation (Hafenbrack, Kinias, & Barsade, 2014).

When I compared responses to mindfulness questions on the first and last days of class, the percentage of students providing a reasonably accurate definition of mindfulness jumped from 10% to 68%, and the percentage listing cognition-related benefits of mindfulness went from 17% to 59%. However, there was no change in the reported practice of mindfulness/meditation, nor in the perceived importance of the scientific study of mindfulness.

I also incorporated mindfulness into my upper-level course, Seminar in Cognition, Teaching, and Learning. I began this class with an assignment to watch Andy Puddicombe’s TED talk as an orientation to mindfulness (https://www.ted.com/talks/andy_puddicombe_all_it_takes_is_10_mindful_minutes?language=en); to watch the introductory Headspace video; and to complete Day 1 of Headspace’s free “Take 10” program. Students were asked to commit to 10 minutes of guided meditation per day for the next 10 days, then to submit a written reflection. In their reflections, every student expressed openness to the possibility of trying meditation, and for all but 2 students (out of 18), this would be their first experience with it. However, their reflections after 10 days were less encouraging – due perhaps more to time management issues than anything. Although it was a required assignment, many did not find time to complete the program.

Later in the course, I assigned articles focusing on mindfulness and meditation. Students read an article about the neuroscience of mindfulness and mind-wandering, with implications for education (Immordino-Yang, Christodoulou, & Singh, 2012). They also read and discussed the article on working memory and GRE performance used in Cognitive Psychology (Mrazek et al., 2013). This class day was purposefully scheduled to coincide with Mary-Helen Immordino-Yang’s on-campus lecture, which students were encouraged to attend.

About five weeks into the semester, we launched a collaborative class project to collect an annotated reference list of resources on mindfulness for educators. Students used library and web applications to search for resources, then built a shared document. The final product was a 16-page file containing primary research articles, review/critique articles, books and book chapters, popular press articles, and web sites relevant to the topic of Mindfulness and Education (http://blogs.goucher.edu/themesemester/files/2016/04/Mindfulness-and-Education-Resources-Sp16.pdf).

Though I did not collect formal data in this course, students generally demonstrated interest and enthusiasm. Even given the density of some of the readings on mindfulness, there was a good amount of energized discussion. Also, I was impressed by their active participation in the collaborative project and felt this was a meaningful and authentic learning experience.

Health and Clinical Psychology Courses (DFW)

Mindfulness seemed a natural fit for my mid-level course in health psychology. Indeed, the topic had come up organically in years past, through a project in which students choose a health behavior to change, using empirically-informed strategies – many students chose to adopt a meditation practice. Spring 2016 was no exception, as several students took on this challenge, availing themselves of tools and apps (e.g., Headspace, Calm) as part of their strategic behavior change project.

I incorporated a mindfulness-related learning objective into the course: by the end of the semester, students should be able to “describe mindfulness and its health-related benefits.” Mindfulness was woven into several sections of the course. At the start of the course, where we usually focus on what health psychology is, students also read a brief overview of mindfulness (Kabat-Zinn, 1994), allowing us to operate from a shared conceptualization of mindfulness and to relate it to mental and physical health.

The health psychology course includes a community-based learning component in which students work collaboratively with staff from Hopewell Cancer Support (a local organization providing psychosocial services to those affected by cancer – including some related to mindfulness), to address particular challenges faced by the non-profit. Because of this collaboration, we discuss cancer early in the class, as well as the research on psychosocial interventions for cancer. Here students read and discussed an article on Mindfulness-Based Cancer Recovery (Tamagawa et al., 2015). Later in the class, as part of our stress and coping topic, we read and talked more broadly about mindfulness and health, reading a review article on mindfulness-based treatments (and research on their effectiveness) for a variety of health conditions (Carlson, 2015). These readings were brought into the classroom in a variety of ways: sometimes we would discuss the articles as a large group, or in small groups. Sometimes I would start class by projecting a short list of thought questions on the screen about the reading and would ask students to write for a minute or two about each question, before getting into groups to discuss one of the questions in more depth.

Throughout the semester, the mindfulness-related events on campus were brought into the class, through an “event-reporting” assignment. Specifically, students were asked to sign up to attend one of 6 events on campus or in the community during the semester (four of which were mindfulness theme semester speakers Mary-Helen Immordino-Yang, Omid Safi, Alicia Garza, and Dan Siegel), and to report back to the class about what they had heard. Their reports were informal and included (a) biographical information about the speaker (obtained from the event or through Internet research), (b) the main point or points of the talk, (c) the types of “evidence” used to make those points (case examples, personal experience, research…), and (d) how the event related to the field of health psychology or to specific topics covered in class.

I conceived of the “event reporting” assignment as a way to encourage attendance at these events without insisting that all students attend them all (unrealistic, given schedule constraints), and as a way for the whole class to get some benefit from each talk. In addition, I wanted students to think actively about the events they attended, including identifying the speaker’s main point(s) and the different types of arguments that can be made (based on different “ways of knowing”). I was so pleased with this assignment that I have used it again since.

During the theme semester I also taught an upper-level course, Seminar in Clinical Psychology: Emotion Regulation, which has always included readings about, experiential activities with, and discussion of mindfulness. During the mindfulness theme semester, I incorporated mindfulness into one of the existing learning objectives, stating that students would be able to “discuss a variety of emotion regulation strategies (including mindfulness) and evaluate their adaptive and maladaptive aspects.”

In previous iterations of the course, I had introduced students to the practice of mindfulness by conducting part of Jon Kabat-Zinn’s (2006) eating meditation (mindfully attending to a raisin). This semester, I increased the experiential coverage of mindfulness, inviting the class to engage in “Mindful Mondays,” a collection of activities that allowed us to try a variety of purported mindfulness inductions, and to compare and contrast them. I started a shared document and invited students to construct the list of activities collaboratively. Several students added activities but requested that I (or a guide on a video) lead the class through them (e.g., a brief chair-yoga routine intended for the workplace); others proposed activities that they led themselves (e.g., a walking meditation, based on an experience a student had had at a monastery while studying abroad). The ultimate list included activities from the more traditional raisin meditation and a body scan to “mindful creative expression” and coloring. We sometimes left our seats (to do yoga or sit on the floor), and we sometimes left the classroom (to do the walking meditation on the campus’s labyrinth).

These exercises were voluntary; students could arrive five minutes late to class on any given Monday, if they did not wish to participate in an activity. Generally, though, attendance was excellent, and students seemed enthusiastic about Mindful Mondays (indeed, I proposed such a thing to my seminar the subsequent semester, and they, too, chose to partake). Discussions following the practice focused on topics such as whether or not the effects of the exercises felt subjectively like mindfulness (per the attentional and attitudinal components of the definition), whether or not there might be inadvertent harms associated with these activities, whether some people might benefit from some types of mindfulness more than others, and what characteristics might predict positive experiences with which activities.

During the theme semester, the class dug more deeply into the scholarly literature on mindfulness, as well. The class has long included a reading on third-wave cognitive behavioral interventions that provides a nice overview of mindfulness as it is incorporated into these treatments (Baer & Huss, 2008). This semester we also read pieces focused on the emotional benefits of mindfulness (Arch & Landy, 2015) and on mindfulness and emotion regulation (Corcoran, Farb, Anderson, & Segal, 2010; Leahy, Tirch, & Napolitano, 2011).

Near the end of the semester, I asked students to create “concept maps” of mindfulness, in an attempt to integrate the varied aspects of mindfulness that we had read about, discussed, and experienced. Students worked on blank paper, and then volunteered to have their concept maps projected, so that the class could discuss the various components of mindfulness and associated constructs. While each of these concept maps was of course different, they all reflected the complexity of the concept, and I believe that by the end of the semester students showed substantial improvement in their understandings of the construct of mindfulness as used in contemporary clinical psychology.

Our Research, in Brief

Separate from the theme semester courses, we have conducted systematic research on mindfulness in the college classroom (importantly, no data were collected during the theme semester). In our study, students in psychology, chemistry, peace studies, and English classes followed a 5-minute guided meditation (an edited mp3 file; Kabat-Zinn, 2005, used with permission) at the start of class. Within-subjects analyses found no benefits for working memory, content retention, mindful awareness during class, or elaboration, at the end of a 4-week period in which students followed the guided meditation, as compared to a 4-week period in which they did not. While we refer interested readers to the full research report (Friedman-Wheeler et al., 2017), we want to share some thoughts about how such an exercise might be beneficial, with adjustments.

For one, it may be that students who weren’t interested in participating actively did not (although they did sit quietly during the meditation period). It may also be the case that five minutes is not the appropriate dose of meditation for the classroom. Perhaps one minute of silent meditation would be better-suited to the classroom setting (and feel more do-able to students). On the other hand, perhaps five minutes three times a week is an insufficient dose, though a larger dose would consume more class time than instructors might wish.

Perhaps student buy-in and benefit are enhanced when more context is provided, as was done in the theme semester courses described in this essay. There is an obvious risk of demand characteristics, but perhaps those with a greater understanding of mindfulness might derive more benefit from it than those who participate in an exercise without fully understanding why.

Conclusion: Opportunities and Challenges for
Mindfulness in Psychology Courses

From an academic perspective of encouraging undergraduate students to learn about the science of mindfulness, readers should bear in mind that the level and quality of available readings are varied. For example, while there is ample scholarly work on mindfulness in clinical and health psychology, there is less research suitable for undergraduates related to cognition. Overall, there is a need for more research on mindfulness and learning in higher education. As noted above, the results of our research study suggest no measurable impact of brief in-class interventions on variables related to academic performance, though others have found benefits (e.g., Helber, Zook, & Immergut, 2012; Ramsburg & Youmans, 2014).

From a class-time-management perspective, we experienced challenges balancing mindfulness exercises with other activities and content. We found that exercises between two and ten minutes long can work well–and incorporating mindfulness is made far easier by the availability of short mindful meditation exercises online, including those that can be guided by the instructor, and those that are pre-packaged to be presented in video and/or auditory format.

From a student-engagement perspective, we found that many students were “on board” with the idea of using a small amount of class time to practice mindfulness. However, some seemed disengaged.

From a student mental health perspective, though there is research suggesting mindfulness practice may lead to improved mental health, we also noted the potential for negative affect–irritation or boredom, or in some cases, perhaps feelings of being overwhelmed (as might happen to some survivors of trauma; Briere & Scott, 2012). We handled these possibilities in this several ways: (1) permitting students to not attend the mindfulness portion of class and/or to leave the room as needed; (2) reminding students that no one can be forced to meditate, and that they can choose to ignore the instructions and sit quietly during the exercises.

In sum, there are many opportunities for bringing the science and practice of mindfulness into the undergraduate classroom, and the potential seems great. There are, however, challenges to be explored and better understood, as we seek creative ways to connect our students with mindfulness so that they might benefit from it intellectually and personally.

References

Arch, J. J., & Landy, L. N. (2015). Emotional benefits of mindfulness. In K. W. Brown, J. D. Creswell, R. M. Ryan, K. W. Brown, J. D. Creswell, R. M. Ryan (Eds.), Handbook of mindfulness: Theory, research, and practice (pp. 208-224). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Baer, R. A., & Huss, D. B. (2008). Mindfulness- and acceptance-based therapy. In J. L. Lebow (Ed.), Twenty-first century psychotherapies: Contemporary approaches to theory and practice (pp. 123-166). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons.

Black, D. S., & Fernando, R. (2014). Mindfulness training and classroom behavior among lower-income and ethnic minority elementary school children. Journal of Child and Family Studies, 23(7), 1242-1246. doi:10.1007/s10826-013-9784-4

Briere, J., & Scott, C. (2012). Mindfulness in trauma treatment. In Principles of trauma therapy: A guide to symptoms, evaluation, and treatment, 2nd edition (pp. 215-230). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Britton, W. B., Lepp, N. E., Niles, H. F., Rocha, T., Fisher, N. E., & Gold, J. S. (2014). A randomized controlled pilot trial of classroom-based mindfulness meditation compared to an active control condition in sixth-grade children. Journal of School Psychology, 52(3), 263-278. doi:10.1016/j.jsp.2014.03.002

Carlson, L. E. (2015). Mindfulness-based interventions for physical conditions: A selective review. In K. W. Brown, J. D. Creswell, R. M. Ryan, K. W. Brown, J. D. Creswell, R. M. Ryan (Eds.), Handbook of mindfulness: Theory, research, and practice (pp. 405-425). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Corcoran, K. M., Farb, N., Anderson, A., & Segal, Z. V. (2010). Mindfulness and emotion regulation: Outcomes and possible mediating mechanisms. In A.M. Kring & D.M. Sloan (Eds.), Emotion regulation and psychopathology: A transdiagnostic approach to etiology and treatment (pp. 339-355). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

Curtiss, J., & Hofmann, S. G. (2017). Meditation. In A. Wenzel (Ed.) The SAGE Encyclopedia of Abnormal and Clinical Psychology. Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications.

Friedman-Wheeler, D. G., McCabe, J. A., Chapagain, S., Scherer, A. M., Barrera, M. L., DeVault, K. M., Hoffmann, C., Mazid, L. J., Reese, Z. A., Weinstein, R. N., Mitchell, D., & Finley, M. (2017). A brief mindfulness intervention in the college classroom: Mindful awareness, elaboration, working memory, and retention of course content. Manuscript in preparation.

Hafenbrack, A. C., Kinias, Z., & Barsade, S. G. (2014). Debiasing the mind through meditation:

Mindfulness and the sunk-cost bias. Psychological Science, 25(2), 369-376. doi: 10.1177/0956797613503853

Helber, C., Zook, N., & Immergut, M. (2012). Meditation in higher education: Does it enhance

cognition? Innovative Higher Education, 37(5), 349-358. doi:10.1007/s10755-0129217-0

Hughes, J. W., Fresco, D. M., Myerscough, R., van Dulmen, M. M., Carlson, L. E., & Josephson, R. (2013). Randomized controlled trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction for prehypertension. Psychosomatic Medicine, 75(8), 721-728. doi:10.1097/PSY.0b013e3182a3e4e5

Immordino-Yang, M. H., Christodoulou, J. A., Singh, V. (2012). Rest is not idleness:

Implications of the brain’s default mode for human development and education. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 7, 352-364.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (1994). Wherever you go, there you are: Mindfulness meditation in everyday life. New York, NY: Hyperion.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (2005). Sitting meditation. On Guided Meditation (Series 1). [mp3 file]. Louisville, CO: Sounds True, Inc.

Kabat-Zinn, J. (2006). Eating meditation. On Mindfulness for Beginners [CD]. Louisville, CO: Sounds True, Incorporated.

Kozhevnikov, M., Louchakova, O., Josipovic, Z, & Motes, M. A. (2009). The enhancement of

visuospatial processing efficiency through Buddhist Deity Meditation. Psychological Science, 20(5), 645-653. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2009.02345.x

Leahy, R. L., Tirch, D., & Napolitano, L. A. (2011). Mindfulness. In Emotion regulation in psychotherapy: A practitioner’s guide (pp.91-116). New York, NY: Guilford Press.

MacLean, K. A., Ferrer, E., Aichele, S. R., Bridwell, D. A., Zanesco, A. P., Jacobs, T. L….

(2010). Intensive meditation training improves perceptual discrimination and sustained attention. Psychological Science, 21(6), 829-839. doi: 10.1177/0956797610371339

Mindful Schools. (2017). Research on Mindfulness in Education [Web log page]. Retreived from http://www.mindfulschools.org/about-mindfulness/research/

Mrazek, M. D., Franklin, M. S., Phillips, D. T., Baird, B., & Schooler, J. W. (2013). Mindfulness training improves working memory capacity and GRE performance while reducing mind wandering. Psychological Science, 24(5), 776-781. doi:10.1177/0956797612459659

Ramsburg, J. T., & Youmans, R. J. (2014). Meditation in the higher-education classroom: Meditation training improves student knowledge retention during lectures. Mindfulness, 5(4), 431-441. doi:10.1007/s12671-013-0199-5

Sedlmeier, P., Eberth, J., Schwarz, M., Zimmermann, D., Haarig, F., Jaeger, S., & Kunze, S. (2012). The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 138(6), 1139-1171. doi:10.1037/a0028168

Tamagawa, R., Speca, M., Stephen, J., Pickering, B., Lawlor-Savage, L., & Calrson, L. E. (2015). Predictors and effects of class attendance and home practice of yoga and meditation among breast cancer survivors in a Mindfulness-Based Cancer Recovery (MBCR) program. Mindfulness, 6(5), 1201-1201. Doi: 10.1007/s12671-014-0381-4.

Wilson, B. M., Mickes, L., Stolarz-Fantino, S., Evrard, M., & Fantino, E. (2015). Increased false-memory susceptibility after mindfulness meditation. Psychological Science, 26(10), 1567-1573. doi: 10.1177/0956797615593705

Dara G. Friedman-Wheeler is a licensed clinical psychologist and Associate Professor of Psychology at Goucher College, in Baltimore, MD. She earned her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from American University in Washington DC. She teaches courses on psychological distress and disorder (abnormal psychology), health psychology, quantitative research methods, and emotion regulation, as well as serving as core faculty for Goucher’s public health minor. She has experience working with patients in the public sector with presenting problems such as mood disorders, anxiety disorders, suicidality, chronic pain, chronic illness, substance abuse/dependence, and personality disorders. She has co-authored empirical journal articles and the book Group Cognitive Therapy for Addictions (with Drs. Wenzel, Liese, and Beck), served as associate editor for the SAGE Encyclopedia of Abnormal and Clinical Psychology, and has received several awards from the National Institutes of Health. Her interests are in the areas of coping, health, addictions, behavior change, cognitive therapy and mood disorders.

Jennifer A. McCabe is an Associate Professor of Psychology, and director of the Center for Psychology, at Goucher College in Baltimore, MD. She earned her Ph.D. in Cognitive Psychology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She teaches courses on human cognition, as well as introductory psychology. Her research focuses on memory strategies, metacognition, and the scholarship of teaching and learning. She has been recently published in Memory and Cognition, Psychological Science in the Public Interest, Teaching of Psychology, Instructional Science, and Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research. Supported by Instructional Resource Awards from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology, she has also published two online resources for psychology educators on the topics of mnemonics and memory-strategy demonstrations. She is a consulting editor for Teaching of Psychology.

Fantasy Researcher League: Engaging Students in Psychological Research

(Past member) — Tue, 14 Nov 2017 18:04:24 GMT

Fantasy Researcher League: Engaging Students in Psychological Research
Daniel R. VanHorn, North Central College

In this essay, I describe a Fantasy Researcher League course design that I presented to a group of colleagues at the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology (NITOP) in 2013. This innovative course was designed to get students excited about psychological research. I am grateful for the encouragement and feedback that I received from those who attended the institute. I have divided this essay into four sections. First, I describe the motivation behind the development of the course. Second, I describe the course itself. Third, I present survey data collected from students that have taken the course. Finally, I discuss how this course might be used in the future.

Motivation

While students may not complete textbook reading assignments regularly (Burchfield & Sappington, 2000; Clump, Bauer, & Bradley, 2004), they do often find value in the primary textbook assigned for a course (Carpenter, Bullock, & Potter, 2006). For example, a textbook is often a very useful quick reference guide. Textbooks are also helpful because they simplify and clarify psychological research. The problem with textbooks is that, in truth, psychological research is not simple and clear, but rather it is complex and messy. Textbooks also often present information as if it is finalized instead of an ongoing process and dialogue among experts in the field. Finally, many textbooks are not structured in a way that enables critical evaluation of the research they present. Reading and discussing primary sources (e.g., articles with original research that are published in peer-reviewed journals) provides an alternative to textbooks, and I believe students significantly benefit from working with primary sources in psychology. When students work with primary sources they begin to appreciate the intricate work behind what textbooks present as statements of obvious fact. They start to see that psychological research is constantly evolving and that there is still much to be learned. Working with the psychological literature also helps students develop critical thinking skills (Anisfeld, 1987; Chamberlain & Burrough, 1985). They learn to critically examine evidence and use that evidence to evaluate theories and/or claims. A significant challenge that many psychology teachers, including myself, face is getting students to engage in psychological research. Reading and thinking about psychological research is difficult, so we have to find creative ways to motivate our students to work with primary sources in psychology. One approach is to take the things that excite our students outside the classroom and implement them inside the classroom. Keeping this approach in mind, I looked to fantasy sports for help in getting my students engaged with the psychological literature.

Fantasy sports are extremely popular. The Fantasy Sports Trade Association (2013) estimates the 2013 American market for fantasy sports is over 35 million players. Fantasy sports that are available to players include baseball, basketball, football, hockey, soccer, golf, and auto racing. In fantasy sports, approximately 8-14 participants get together and form a league in the sport of their choice. For example, a small group of friends might form a fantasy professional American football league. Each participant in the league selects current professional American football players that make up their fantasy team. The players on a participant’s team score points based on how they perform in real-life games (e.g., how many yards they gain and how many touchdowns they score) and the participants’ teams compete against each other.

The Course

I feel that fantasy sports provides a model that can be utilized in classrooms for engaging students. I took the fantasy sports model and modified it to engage students in psychological research by creating a course that took the form of a game. The official title of the course was Immersion in the Psychological Literature, but the course became known to students and faculty alike as Fantasy Researcher League. The official learning objectives of the course included the following: effectively search for published research and track research lines/programs, describe the research programs of several prominent psychologists, explain the current theory and findings of a few threads of research in the field, and identify how psychological theory and research evolve over the course of a research program. In addition to the official learning objectives described above, I wanted to show students that psychological research is dynamic. It is evolutionary. What students read in their textbooks is old news. I wanted my students to be on the cutting edge of psychological research and get a sense of what is feels like to discover something new. I hoped to get my students excited about research in psychology. I also wanted them to discuss psychology outside of a traditional classroom setting in a place where they would exchange ideas and not worry about whether they were getting a C+ or a B- in the course. Finally, I wanted them to discover their passion by having the freedom to explore their own academic interests.

The course consisted of a small group of students that met with faculty approximately every three weeks throughout the academic school year. At the beginning of the course, the faculty members teaching the course put together a list of several prominent psychology researchers from a variety of research areas. Students were given the opportunity to add other researchers to this list. All the researchers on the list had to be currently active in the discipline. Each student drafted a team of five researchers from the finalized list. Each researcher could only be selected once. These teams made up our fantasy researcher league. Each student then selected one published article by each of their five researchers and tracked the number of times each article was cited during the course of the game. Students had the option to replace their articles at the beginning of each term. Students also kept track of all of their researchers’ scholarly activities and accomplishments (e.g., books, articles, and presentations) during the academic year. Students documented their researchers’ productivity by designing and maintaining a team webpage. A student earned points for their team by correctly documenting their team’s scholarly activities and citations. The league scoring system is described in Table 1.

Table 1

Fantasy Researcher League Scoring System

Scholarly Activity	Points
Book single author	8
Book co-author	4
Book editor	3
Book chapter author	3
Article first author	4
Article other than first author	2
Citation	1
Presentation	3
Grant/Award	3

During class meetings, students discussed the recent research activity of their teams. Students were also asked to connect their researchers’ current work to their researchers’ past work. At the end of each class, team scores were updated and high scoring teams were recognized.

Survey Data

Five students that participated in the course during the fall of 2011 and eight students that participated during the winter of 2012 completed a voluntary survey where they indicated how much they agreed or disagreed with specific statements related to the learning objectives for the course. Ratings ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree). Student responses to the closed-ended survey questions are shown in Table 2, and they suggest that we met our learning objectives. The vast majority of students agreed that they developed basic research skills, understood and could discuss cutting edge research, learned about today’s prominent psychological researchers, and learned how research programs evolve over time.

Table 2

Student Survey Responses on Course Learning Objectives

As a result of participating in this course, Recoded 7pt. scale to 3pt. scale	Agree (5-7)	Neutral (4)	Disagree (1-3)
I can better search PsycInfo to locate research-related material and people.	11	1	1
I can more effectively search for psychological research and researchers in electronic sources.	12	1	0
I am more familiar with the intellectual history and background of some psychology researchers.	11	2	0
I am more familiar with some of the most current research in psychology.	13	0	0
I feel more competent at presenting and discussing a researcher’s current research.	13	0	0
I have a better understanding of how a researcher’s program of research or interests evolves over time.	11	2	0
I can describe the research program of several prominent psychology researchers.	9	4	0
I have a better sense of which areas of psychology interest me and which do not.	13	0	0
I can better create and edit webpages.	13	0	0

Students were then asked to describe what they learned in the class beyond the topics already covered in the closed-ended survey questions. Responses to these questions suggest that students enjoyed the social nature of the game, learned more about psychological research, and began to discover what areas of psychology interest them most. Examples of student responses to this open-ended question are included below.

· “I was able to find researchers that I would be interested in following later.”

· “I learned what areas in psychology interest me, which has helped me make decisions for my future.”

· “How to effectively create a webpage.”

· “What modern research is like.”

· “Better research skills.”

· “How to find articles that cite another article.”

· “Winning!”

The Future

Student surveys suggest that the fantasy researcher league model engages students in psychological research and provides an exciting alternative to traditional courses and/or assignments. The fantasy researcher league model gets students to read and discuss primary sources. This is crucial because working with primary sources is one way for students to develop critical thinking skills (Anisfeld, 1987; Chamberlain & Burrough, 1985). The fantasy researcher league model also helps create a learning community where students play a central role in learning and discovery. It is the students that select the researchers and research topics that are presented and discussed in class. In the fantasy researcher league model, teachers provide the initial structure of the course but then focus on supporting and empowering student learning and discovery. In the future, I envision a fantasy researcher league online gaming experience that can be used in a variety of disciplines and can bring together team managers from a college or across the world. In the meantime, I believe that the fantasy researcher league course described here could be incorporated into many courses as a long-term research project. In my course, students worked individually, but I believe the project would also work well if completed in small groups.

References

Anisfeld, M. (1987). A course to develop competence in critical reading of empirical research in psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 14(4), 224-227. doi:10.1207/s15328023top1404_8

Burchfield, C. M., & Sappington, J. (2000). Compliance with required reading assignments. Teaching of Psychology, 27(1), 58-60.

Carpenter, P., Bullock, A., & Potter, J. (2006). Textbooks in teaching and learning: The views of students and their teachers. Brookes eJournal of Learning and Teaching, 2(1), Retrieved from http://bejlt.brookes.ac.uk/

Chamberlain, K., & Burrough, S. (1985). Techniques for teaching critical reading. Teaching of Psychology, 12(4), 213-215. doi:10.1207/s15328023top1204_8

Clump, M. A., Bauer, H., & Bradley, C. (2004). The extent to which psychology students read textbooks: A multiple class analysis of reading across the psychology curriculum. Journal of Instructional Psychology, 31(3), 227-232.

Fantasy Sports Trade Association. (2013). Home page. Retrieved from http://www.fsta.org/

***************************

Daniel R. VanHorn earned his B.S. in psychology from Wittenberg University in 2003. He earned his M.S. (2005) and Ph.D. (2009) in cognitive psychology from Purdue University. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Psychology at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois. He regularly teaches introductory psychology, cognitive psychology, statistics, and research methods. He also has an active research program in cognitive psychology where he trains aspiring psychologists.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Do These Things Even Work? A Call for Research on Study Guides

(Past member) — Thu, 02 Nov 2017 21:20:48 GMT

Do These Things Even Work? A Call for Research on Study Guides

J. Hackathorn, A. W. Joyce, and M. J. Bordieri
Murray State University

If one had to predict the most common question asked by students each semester, it would be: “What will be on the test?” Moreover, this question is frequently and predictably followed by requests for a study guide. As good, well-meaning instructors, many of us sigh (maybe cry a little) but ultimately provide them. In fact, many of us even include them in course materials prior to the actual request, just to avoid the conversation. Given how common these requests are, it is surprising that there is little actual research regarding the effectiveness of study guides. A quick search, using key terms such as study guides and exam guides, on Google Scholar leads to only a handful of results, many of which are dated and focused on creating study guides (as opposed to assessing them). Thus, we suddenly found ourselves asking: How much do we really know about study guides? Do these things even work?

Arguably, any strategy or aid should help students to perform better on exams than nothing. However, some of the resources that students prefer may actually hinder their performance rather than help it. For example, in a recent analysis of learning aid use and exam performance, Gurung (2004) found that students rate textbooks’ bolded key terms as the most helpful study aid to them, but that their perceived helpfulness of this resource negatively relates to exam performance. Conversely, what they rate as least helpful (i.e., active review practices) has the strongest evidence of improving exam performance (e.g. Dickson, Miller, & Devoley, 2005). In another example, a comparison of exam review styles found that, although students do not prefer traditional (i.e., student directed question and answer format) style exam reviews, their exam performance is highest when they use this style, as compared to other styles (Hackathorn, Cornell, Garczynski, Solomon, Blankmeyer, & Tennial, 2012). Ultimately, this suggests there is a mismatch between what we (perhaps both the learner and the instructor) prefer and what actually improves knowledge, understanding, and exam performance.

To increase our understanding of study guides, the authors of this essay, as well as other faculty members, recently conducted two separate studies (Cushen, et al., currently under review for publication), using the General Psychology population at Murray State University (MSU). In the first study, we conducted a small experiment using all of the sections of General Psychology offered during a single semester at MSU. Using counterbalancing and random assignment of sections, we compared exam performance following an instructor-provided concept list study guide to performance following student generated study guides. Then, at the end of the semester we queried students’ preferences and gave another brief quiz over material from the first two exams. Our results indicate that despite benefiting the most from creating their own study guides, students strongly prefer the instructor-provided guides.

In a second study, after we realized that we were making assumptions by limiting study guides to only concept lists and student generated guides, we simply asked our students to identify the types of study guides they prefer. In replication of the past studies that showed students tend to prefer the least helpful study tools, we found that students prefer that the instructor provide study guides that include a list of concepts, followed by definitions and examples of application. In other words, students prefer that the instructor create what ostensibly could be referred to as “their notes.” They prefer excerpts from the textbooks and simple concept lists the least, but prefer an instructor provided concept list style more than nothing at all or creating their own study guide. In examining their preferences, we realize that it is probably not happenstance that the least preferred study guide styles are also the styles that require the most effort from the student to actively summarize, organize, or synthesize course concepts.

Obviously, the next question is: What do we do with this information? We do not believe that we should “throw the baby out with the bathwater.” In Fall of 2016, the primary author of this essay attempted to explain to one class why she would no longer provide study guides, and she was almost the victim of a lynch mob. Perhaps that is hyperbole. Still, the students did not appear to believe that the lack of instructor-provided study guides was in their best interest. In hindsight, the instructor may have been too quick to implement this change. There is much more information needed in this regard.

In our initial experiment, we tested the efficacy of a concept-list style study guide. Basically, we used the style of study guide that answers the ever-present question: “What is on the test? What should I study?” Correctly using this style means that students have to then find definitions, create mental models, links, and organization, and create their own application examples. However, it is unclear how many actually do that. It is possible that, instead, students simply look at the list, recognize the terms, and think that they have studied enough to be prepared for the exam. Future research is needed to see exactly what students do with those study guides.

In that same vein, beyond not knowing how to properly use a study guide, it is also possible that students do not know how to create a study guide. Although it is important for students to know how to facilitate their own learning, many students have defective study strategies (Bjork, Dunlosky, & Kornell, 2013). Our participants were students in a freshman-level course, with the vast majority being first-semester freshmen. Creating a study guide, especially an effective one, is hard work and takes a clear understanding of what type of information is important. Freshmen, specifically, may struggle with this skill. For example, in a recent General Psychology homework assignment, students were asked to create a mnemonic device related to neurotransmitters. The instructor was quite surprised when many of the students created an acronym depicting an arbitrary list of neurotransmitter names. Sadly, there were no exam questions that would ask them to provide a random list of neurotransmitters. Suffice it to say, freshmen may not have a strong understanding of what it takes to succeed on rigorous college-level exams.

Unfortunately, many new college students will find, perhaps too late, that their high school strategy of simply memorizing definitions will not be as successful in the college classroom. Thus, one of the first steps toward student success may involve taking time to teach them how to create good study aids. In our experiment, we do not report the types of study guides that students self-create. We can only imagine (and have discussed at great lengths) that they are probably terrible. A cursory review across a subsample of our students confirms that the vast majority of our students fail to consistently generate examples of course content and instead provide a simple list of terms and definitions or a chapter outline in their self-created guides. However, regardless of the quality of the study guides, their exam grades are still higher when they create their own study guides. As a result, even if the instructor gives students a foundation with the concept-list style, teaching them how to improve those study guides should prove fruitful. This assumes, of course, that we can convince students to try a new, potentially more intensive and effortful, study technique that they actually utilize rather than backtracking into old habits as the exam date looms closer (Dembo & Seli, 2004).

Unfortunately, it is still unclear which types of study guides are the most beneficial. Outside of the extensive work of Karen Wood (Wood, 1989; 1993), who outlines various types of study guides and their individualized purposes, there is a dearth of information regarding which types of study guides are the most effective and in which situations they are effective. The type of study guide one might use in an introductory course where students are being given a foundation for future classes is probably very different from the guide one might use in an applied research methods course in which students are practicing a skill. Thus, much more information is needed with regards to not only the general efficacy, but also the relevance and applicability of study guides across different courses and learners.

Finally, as tends to be the case in many of our classes, students sometimes appear to dislike assignments that really challenge or require effort of them. It is probably not a coincidence that students prefer the study aids that required less of their effort. And, before we all get migraines from rolling our eyes, it is important to consider that the students may not realize that this relationship exists. As an example, in a recent end-of-semester evaluation comment a student requested the following: “I do not want to be spoon-fed the information, but it would be nice if we could be provided with a list of concepts, in order from the most important to the least important, to help us study for exams.” Clearly, this student fails to see the connection here between spoon-feeding and the study guide that they requested. Moreover, we doubt this student is alone in this desire. As such, asking students to create their own study guides may result in backlash. Importantly some, if not all, of this backlash can be reduced with transparency, communication, and rapport. However, instructors will need to assess the risk/benefit ratio of implementing a change like this.

The most surprising aspect of our research is that very few of us question our own use of study guides, even though, frankly, we tire of creating them. Many of us create these study guides because the students ask for them, or to avoid potential mutiny. Yet, as study guides have been around for so long and are so ubiquitous in higher education, very few of us inquire as to whether they work. It is important to note that this does not make us (or you) bad instructors. Care and efforts for students in any form should never be disregarded. In fact, we suspect that there are myriad instructors who have found ways to improve the effectiveness of study guides, but have yet to publish them. Thus, this essay is a mere call to action. Help us, help them; help us, help ourselves.

References

Bjork, R. A., Dunlosky, J., & Kornell, N. (2013). Self-regulated learning: Beliefs, techniques, and illusions. Annual Review of Psychology, 64, 417-444.

Cushen, P., Vázquez Brown, M., Hackathorn, J., Rife, S. C., Joyce, A. W., Smith, E., …Daniels, J. (Under Review). "What's on the test?": The impact of giving students a concept-list study guide.

Dembo, M. H., & Seli, H. P. (2004). Students' resistance to change in learning strategies courses. Journal of Developmental Education, 27(3), 2 - 11.

Dickson, K. L., Miller, M. D., & Devoley, M. S. (2005). Effect of textbook study guides on student performance in introductory psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 32(1), 34-39.

Gurung, R. A. (2004). Pedagogical aids: Learning enhancers or dangerous detours?. Teaching of Psychology, 31(3), 164-166.

Hackathorn, J., Cornell, K., Garczynski, A., Solomon, E., Blankmeyer, K., & Tennial, R. (2012). Examining exam reviews: A comparison of exam scores and attitudes. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 12(3), 78-87.

Wood, K. D. (1989). The Study Guide: A Strategy Review. Paper presented at the Annual Meeting of the College Reading Association. Philadelphia, PA.

Wood, K. D. (1992). Guiding readers through text: A review of study guides. Newark, DE, International Reading Association.

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Jana Hackathorn, Dr. Amanda W. Joyce, and Dr. Michael J. Bordieri are all junior faculty at Murray State University in Murray, KY. Between them, they study everything from close relationships to inhibition in children, from sex to mindfulness, and of course from pedagogy to teaching effectiveness. Last year, the entire junior faculty in Psychology at Murray State (there are a total of eight of them) pooled their efforts to conduct a study examining a topic for which they had all complained: student demands for study guides. As a result of the study, they bonded, resulting in much happier happy hours and a very functional, albeit odd, departmental atmosphere.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Team-Based Learning: A Tool for Your Pedagogical Toolbox

(Past member) — Wed, 04 Oct 2017 23:19:09 GMT

Team-Based Learning: A Tool for Your Pedagogical Toolbox

Krisztina V. Jakobsen
James Madison University

Teachers whose different styles match with the pedagogical methods they use make for a more authentic and effective teaching and learning experience. There are a variety of strategies in the literature for teachers who would like to move away from a purely lecture format. One of those, Team-Based Learning (TBL), is a method I have been using for several years. TBL is a method to encourage students to be actively involved in their learning. Similar to the ideals associated with a flipped classroom (Jakobsen & Knetemann, in press), students learn primary course content outside of the classroom and work in permanent teams with the material during class (Michaelsen, Bauman, Knight, & Fink, 2004). Below, I outline the core components of TBL and share a few studies that my students and I have done examining the impact on student learning.

The TBL Process

Readiness Assurance Process

The first steps in the TBL process involves ensuring that students understand course material; this process—the Readiness Assurance Process—includes preparation outside of class, quizzes in class, and a short lecture. Students prepare for class by reading the textbook, watching videos, and/or answering guided questions. When students come to class, they take a multiple-choice quiz individually, which assesses student’s understanding of the course material at various levels of Bloom’s taxonomy. The individual quiz holds students accountable for completing their out of class preparation. Next, students work in their teams to complete the same multiple-choice quiz again. Students receive immediate feedback on their team quiz using scratch-off IF-AT forms. After the team quiz, students have a chance to appeal any questions they miss, which requires them to revisit course materials and provides an opportunity to make a compelling case for alternate answers based on the course materials. Finally, teams submit any questions they still have about the material and the instructor gives a short “muddiest points” lecture. The Readiness Assurance Process takes 50-75 minutes to complete.

Application Exercises

After the completion of the Readiness Assurance Process, students should have the necessary knowledge to complete application exercises, which usually take 2-4 class periods. Depending on the complexity of the questions, students may complete 2-5 application exercise questions during a class period. The application exercises have a deliberate structure that allows for teams to focus on the relevant course material and facilitates team and class discussions. The keys to developing successful application exercises involve having all teams work on the same questions, requiring teams to make a simple choice, and having teams report their answer choices simultaneously. To demonstrate the importance of the structure of the application exercises, think about the type and quality of discussions students may have with open-ended questions (Question 1 below) compared to more directed questions (Question 2 below).

Question 1: This class is structured using Team-Based Learning (TBL), in which you learn the primary course content outside of class and then work in permanent teams during class to get a deeper understanding of the material. Identify at least one way in which each of the theories below helps you understand why the TBL structure is an effective teaching method.

A.    Operant conditioning
B.     Piaget’s theory
C.     Vygotsky’s theory
D.    Information processing theories

Question 2: This class is structured using Team-Based Learning (TBL), in which you learn the primary course content outside of class and then work in permanent teams during class to get a deeper understanding of the material. Decide which of the following theories is most prominent in the TBL structure. Be prepared to support your answer.

A.    Operant conditioning
B.     Piaget’s theory
C.     Vygotsky’s theory
D.    Information processing theories

While Question 1 asks students to apply what they know about the theories to the structure of TBL, it may not generate much discussion. Question 2 meets the requirements of each of the deliberate components of the application exercises. All teams are presented with the same problem. Teams have to make a choice among options A-D. For this particular question, all of the answer choices are correct, so what will generate discussion among teams is the rationale behind their decisions. Finally, because the answer choices are very clear, it is easy for teams to simultaneously report their decisions by holding up cards, for example.

Does it Work?

Students generally have positive experiences with TBL. They also seem to enjoy the structure (e.g., Adelkhalek, Hussein, Gibbs, & Hamdy, 2010) and report perceiving TBL as an effective teaching method (e.g., Haberyan, 2007). The results are mixed in terms the impact of TBL on academic outcomes compared to more traditional teaching methods (e.g., Carmichael, 2009; Jakobsen, McIlreavy, & Marrs, 2014), and little work has been done regarding how TBL impacts retention (e.g., Emke, Butler, & Larsen, 2016). Over the years, I have worked with student research assistants to collect data in lab-based and classroom-based studies to examine the effectiveness of TBL in promoting recognition memory and retention compared to other pedagogical methods. Here, I present the results of two of those studies.

In a lab-based study, time-slots were randomly assigned to each of our conditions, as follows:

Team-Based Learning: Participants read an article upon arrival to the session, then completed the Readiness Assurance Process and application exercises.
Lecture: Participants received a lecture based on the content of the article and took notes during the lecture.
Reading: Participants read the article and took notes as they read.
Control: Participants completed an anagram.

One week later, all participants took a 10-item multiple-choice quiz to measure their retention of material from the week before. The results revealed that participants in the TBL and Lecture session did not differ on their scores (p = .141), but participants in the TBL session outperformed participants in the Reading (p = .018) and Control sessions (p < .001). The results of this study suggest that TBL and lecture are both effective ways of teaching, particularly in short-term sessions (e.g., workshops).

In a class-based study, two classes were randomly assigned to be taught using TBL or Lecture. During the semester, students in the TBL class completed the Readiness Assurance Process and application exercises, while students in the Lecture class received lectures with active learning components. Students’ understanding of course material was assessed at three time points: (1) pre-test at the beginning of the semester, (2) final at the end of the semester, and (3) post-test three months after the completion of the course. Students completed 28 multiple-choice questions at each of the three time points. We based our analyses on students who contributed data at all three time points (N = 34). Students in the TBL and Lecture class did not differ on their pre-test scores (p = .052) or their post-test scores (p = .052). Students in the TBL class performed better than students in the Lecture class on the final (p = .021), suggesting that TBL may enhance short-term retention of course material. The results of this class study are consistent with those of Emke et al. (2016), in which TBL led to better short-term, but not long-term, retention of course material.

Implementation and Conclusions

Implementing TBL as outlined above requires some upfront investment for organizing and creating preparatory materials, quizzes, and application exercises. The good news is that components of TBL can be implemented in nearly any class with relative ease. For example, it is easy to incorporate a team quiz to already existing individual quizzes, and once students have the content knowledge (e.g., through lectures), application exercises can be added a little at a time.

While there is likely no one pedagogical technique that will work for every instructor, data from the TBL literature and my research suggest that TBL is at least as good as other strategies. These results should encourage teachers to work in areas in which they are most comfortable and to cultivate skills they feel important, whether they are central to the course objectives or merely desirable.

Author note

Portions of this essay were presented at STP’s Annual Conference on Teaching, Decatur, Georgia, October, 2016. This project was supported by the Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Grant and the Alvin V., Jr. and Nancy C. Baird Professorship to KVJ.

Resources

The following website offer wonderful resources for learning more about and getting started with TBL: Learntbl.ca and www.teambasedlearning.org/

References

Abdelkhalek, N., Hussein, A., Gibbs, T., & Hamdy, H. (2010). Using team-based learning to prepare medical students for future problem-based learning. Medical Teacher, 32, 123–129. doi: 10.3109/01421590903548539

Carmichael, J. (2009). Team-based learning enhances performance in introductory biology. Journal of College Science Teaching, 38, 54–61.

Emke, A. R., Butler, A. C., & Larsen, D. P. (2016). Effects of Team-Based Learning on short-term and long-term retention of factual knowledge. Medical Teacher, 38, 306-311. doi: 10.3109/0142159X.2015.1034663

Haberyan, A. (2007). Team-based learning in an industrial/organizational psychology course. North American Journal of Psychology, 9, 143–152.

Jakobsen & Knetemann. (in press). Putting structure to flipped classrooms using Team-Based Learning. International Journal of Teaching and Learning in Higher Education.

Jakobsen, K. V., McIlreavy, M., & Marrs, S. (2014). Team-based Learning: The importance of attendance. Psychology Learning & Teaching, 13(1), 25-31. doi: 10.2304/plat.2014.13.1.25

Michaelsen, L. K., Knight, A. B., & Fink, L. (2004). Team-based learning: A transformative use of small groups in college teaching. Sterling, VA: Stylus Publishing.

Krisztina V. Jakobsen is an Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at James Madison University. She teaches developmental psychology classes in the General Education Program an in the Department of Psychology. Her research interests include studying effective teaching methods and social cognition in infants.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Technology Bans and Student Experience in the College Classroom

(Past member) — Thu, 07 Sep 2017 13:15:08 GMT

Technology Bans and Student Experience in the College Classroom

Thomas Hutcheon, Ph.D.

Bard College

Personal technologies, including laptops and cell phones, have infiltrated the college classroom. Instructors must now decide whether to implement a ban on the unsupervised use of personal technologies in their courses. Anecdotal evidence (“students always seem to be looking at their computer screens and not me during class”), and results from recent studies linking the unsupervised use of technology with reductions in academic performance, have led to declarations that the time to ban technology use in the classroom is now (Rosenblum, 2017). However, it is important for individual instructors to critically evaluate and understand the empirical evidence in favor of technology bans when deciding on the approach to take in their classroom. Moreover, the impact bans have on student’s experience within the course remains unknown. The purpose of this essay is to review the evidence in favor of a technology ban, to describe recent results, which suggest a ban can be harmful to students’ engagement and to provide recommendations for instructors to aid in the development of a technology policy for their classrooms.

Broadly speaking, two primary mechanisms have been proposed to explain the relationship between unsupervised technology use in the classroom and reduced academic performance: misdirection of cognitive resources and superficial encoding of information. First, the presence of personal technology in the classroom allows students a direct line to distracting information via social media, games, and the internet. Diverting cognitive resources towards online shopping or texting with friends necessarily draws resources away from what is happening in the classroom. This misdirection of resources means that students do not process the material presented during lecture and this can harm performance (Fried, 2008; Wood et al. 2012). Importantly, the use of technology may lead to the misdirection of resources, not only for the student using the technology, but for students sitting nearby, and even the instructor (Aguilar-Roca, Williams, & O’Dowd, 2012). Second, even when students are prevented from accessing the internet or other distractions, the use of laptops leads to a relatively superficial encoding of lecture information. Students randomly assigned to take lecture notes using a laptop perform worse on follow-up memory tests of lecture material compared to students randomly assigned to take lecture notes using paper and pencil (Hembrooke & Gay, 2003; Mueller & Oppenheimer, 2014). This finding has been explained by differences in note taking strategies. Specifically, students using a laptop appear to adopt a verbatim strategy in which they type everything that is said during the lecture. In contrast, students using paper and pencil reframe and write down the information from the lecture into their own words. This reframing requires deeper encoding of the information and leads to better retention of the material (Mueller & Oppenheimer, 2014). Thus, despite successfully resisting temptation and devoting resources to the task of taking notes, the use of laptops is still harmful to the retention of material presented during a lecture.

However, there are three things to keep in mind when implementing the findings reviewed above as the basis for your personal classroom policy.

Broadly speaking, studies cited as evidence for the implementation of technology bans use either an experimental or correlational approach. In the typical experimental approach, participants are randomly assigned to use a laptop or paper and pencil to take notes while listening to a lecture. Learning is frequently assessed by a quiz on the material that is presented at the end of the lecture (Wood et al., 2012). Although students using laptops tend to perform worse than those who do not, this procedure is different from students learning the information over the course of a semester, as they likely enact strategies during studying to make up for distracted moments when using online resources, such as reading the textbook or asking a fellow student. The correlational approach collects various measures of student performance, such as GPA and exam grades, and correlates these with student’s reported cell phone and laptop usage. The negative correlation between GPA and frequency of technology use is commonly interpreted as technology usage causing a decrease in performance. However, due to the nature of correlational research, it could similarly be interpreted that weaker students tend to bring their laptops into the classroom (Fried, 2008). In other words, since a causal relationship cannot be drawn between the use of laptops and class performance, removing access to laptops might not lead to changes in performance.

The real-world impact of technology usage on student performance needs to be considered. What does a statistically significant reduction in performance for students using laptop mean for an individual student sitting in one of our classes? One illustrative example comes from a rigorous, large-scale study conducted at the United States Military Academy at West Point. For an entire semester, first year students enrolled in Principles of Economics were randomly assigned to take notes on either a laptop, tablet, or using paper and pencil. The results from this sample of over 700 students yielded a statistically significant impact on performance. Specifically, students in the laptop and tablet conditions performed worse on the final exam compared to students in the paper and pencil condition. Although a statistically significant reduction, the effect amounted to a decrease of 1.7% on the final exam for students in the laptop or tablet condition (Carter, Greenberg, & Walker, 2016). Thus, despite the presumed chronic misdirection of resources and the superficial encoding of information students experience when using technology, the real-world performance benefits are small. While any improvement in performance is welcome, there are many simple techniques that instructors can implement over the course of the semester which can show improved exam performance to a greater extent, including retrieval practice at the end of a lecture (e.g. Lyle & Crawford, 2011).

To date, little research has assessed the impact of a technology ban on student experience within the class. However, recent research conducted in my lab, which was presented at the Society for the Teaching of Psychology Annual Conference on Teaching (Hutcheon, Richard, & Lian, 2016), indicates that implementing a technology ban reduces student engagement. Specifically, using data from sixty-nine undergraduate students across four sections of Introduction to Psychology taught by the same instructor, students randomly assigned to a technology-ban section reported lower levels of engagement in the course compared to students randomly assigned to the technology-permitted section, as assessed by the student course engagement questionnaire (SCEQ) (Handelsman, Briggs, Sullivan, & Towler, 2005). Interestingly, the students surveyed in our sample reported relatively low frequency of cell phone use during a typical class (mean = 2.38) and the vast majority reported a preference for taking notes using paper and pencil (N=61) compared to laptops (N = 8). In fact, looking at the data for the 61 students who reported a preference for taking notes using paper and pencil, we observed a significant reduction in engagement as a function of laptop ban. In other words, the technology ban impacted engagement of students who would not even have used technology in the classroom. These findings suggest that students are sensitive to the structure or rules within the classroom environment, and rules viewed as limiting their choices may impact how much students engage with the material and the instructor.

In contrast to reports of Carter et al. (2016), we observed a marginally significant reduction in end of year grades for students in the technology ban compared to the technology permitted condition. This suggests that the impact of a technology ban on student’s performance in the classroom may not be the same for all classroom environments. Specifically, students enrolled in a more traditional, small liberal arts environment (Bard College compared to West Point) may be more impacted by the implementation of such bans.

Recommendations

Consider the make-up of your class. If you are teaching a small class in which students might not spontaneously use technology, the implementation of a technology ban could negatively impact student experience and performance in the class. In contrast, if you are teaching a large lecture class in which students might feel less engaged to begin with, the ban might help their experience and performance.

Minimize the distraction of others. If you decide not to implement a ban, you should think about ways that you can prevent those students who chose to use laptops from distracting others who choose not to use a laptop. Methods to alleviate this concern include having specific sections of the classroom dedicated to laptop and technology users (Aguilar-Roca et al., 2012).

Provide rationale for your decision. If you decide to implement a technology ban, providing students with a clear explanation as to why the ban is in place, supported by relevant research is one potential method for reducing the impact of a ban on student engagement. In conclusion, there is little doubt that under certain situations, unsupervised technology usage can negatively impact academic performance. However, full consideration regarding the type of course and composition of students within the course is advised before implementing a blanket technology ban.

References

Aguilar-Roca, N. M., Williams, A. E., & O’Dowd, D. K. (2012). The impact of laptop-free zones on student performance and attitudes in large lectures. Computers & Education, 59, 1300-1308.

Carter, S. P., Greenberg, K., & Walker, M. (2016). The impact of computer usage on academic performance: Evidence from a randomized trial at the United States Military Academy (SEII Discussion Paper #2016.02).

Fried, C. B. (2008). In class laptop use and its effects on student learning. Computers & Education, 50, 906-914.

Handelsman, M. M., Briggs, W. L., Sullivan, N., & Towler, A. (2005). A measure of college student course engagement. The Journal of Educational Research, 98, 184-191.

Hembrooke, H., & Gay, G. (2003). The laptop and the lecture: The effects of multitasking in learning environments. Journal of Computing in Higher Education, 15, 46-64.

Hutcheon, T. G., Richard, A., & Lian, A. (2016, October). The impact of a technology ban on student’s perceptions and performance in introduction to psychology. Poster presented at the Society for the Teaching of Psychology 15^th Annual Conference on Teaching, Decatur, GA.

Lyle, K. B., & Crawford, N. A. (2011). Retrieving essential material at the end of lectures improves performance on statistics exams. Teaching of Psychology, 38, 94-97.

Mueller, P. A., & Oppenheimer, D. M. (2014). The pen is mightier than the keyboard: Advantages of longhand over laptop note taking. Psychological Science, 25, 1159-1168.

Rosenblum, D. (2017, January 2). Leave your laptops at the door to my classroom. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2017/01/02/opinion/leave-your-laptops-at-the-door-to-my-classroom.html?_r=0

Wood, E., Zivcakova L., Gentile, P., Archer, K., De Pasquale, D., & Nosko, A. (2012). Examining the impact of off-task multi-tasking with technology on real-time classroom learning. Computers & Education, 58, 365-374.

Tom Hutcheon is a Visiting Assistant Professor in the psychology program at Bard College. Tom earned his B.A. in psychology from Bates College and his M.S. and Ph.D. in Cognition and Brain Science from Georgia Tech. Tom received the Early Career Psychologist Poster award at the 2016 Society for the Teaching of Psychology (STP) Annual Conference on Teaching as well as a 2017 Early Career Psychologist Travel Grant sponsored by STP. Tom’s research interests include cognitive control, cognitive aging, and effective teaching. Tom can be reached at thutcheo@bard.edu.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: That’s What She Said: Educating Students about Plagiarism

(Past member) — Tue, 15 Aug 2017 15:31:56 GMT

That’s What She Said: Educating Students about Plagiarism

Elizabeth A. Sheehan

Georgia State University

Dealing with plagiarism is one of the more unpleasant aspects of our job as instructors. There is the sinking feeling you get when you suspect plagiarism, the moment that your Google search returns the exact passage from your student’s paper, the uncomfortable conversation with the student, the documentation to your department, and the potential hearing with the honor board. I would venture to say most of us have either dealt with these ourselves or at least supported another colleague through the process. These cases range from the cringe-worthy (e.g. copying directly from an instructor’s own published article, turning in a paper written by another student in a past semester) to the more minor infringements (e.g. unintentionally omitting quotation marks around a direct quote).

At the teaching conferences I attended over the last few years, there seems to have been more emphasis on learning outcome assessment and reliance on the APA’s learning outcomes for undergraduates with a psychology major (APA, 2007). One of those outcomes is for students to “demonstrate effective writing skills in various formats” (p. 18). There also never seems to be a lack of presentations on how to incorporate writing assignments into your courses. Increasing writing assignments in your courses might mean increasing the chance you will encounter plagiarism; however, we might be able to prevent some of these cases with a greater focus on educating our students about plagiarism. Moreover, educating our students about plagiarism helps us address other APA learning outcomes about ethical behavior.

WHY DO STUDENTS PLAGIARIZE

To decrease plagiarism, a good place to start would be to try to understand WHY students plagiarize. At the last meeting of the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology, I led a Participant Idea Exchange (PIE) on educating students about plagiarism (Sheehan, 2013). These PIE sessions are roundtable discussions on a topic. My group generated the following list of potential reasons students plagiarize:

· difficulty comprehending a reading;
· rushing through an assignment;
· convenience;
· cultural misunderstanding;
· poor understanding of the definition of plagiarism;
· not knowing how to integrate/synthesize/paraphrase;
· plagiarism is all around us in society; and
· not confident in their ability to write.

You may be familiar with some of these, especially time constraints, difficulty with reading comprehension, and the inability to paraphrase. The idea of culture stood out to me from the PIE discussion. First, some cases of plagiarism could be due to cultural misunderstanding. Stowers and Hummel (2011) provide some examples of how students from an Eastern culture may view the use of another’s work. For instance, they assert some Asian students may see it as a sign of disrespect to paraphrase or change someone else’s words.

A second example of culture is how plagiarism takes place all around us in society. We regularly use the functions of copy and paste on our computers in many different settings. People re-post others’ writing on their Facebook pages, re-blog someone else’s blog entry, forward youTube videos to friends, etc. Usually these events can be accomplished through one or two clicks. While these aren’t examples of academic writing, they do provide precedents that we have to overcome in our courses.

EDUCATING STUDENTS ABOUT PLAGIARISM

We had a discussion about plagiarism in my department, and our faculty reported a number of problems in pursuing cases of plagiarism, including some cases not being reported at all, faculty handling cases on their own, cases meeting our discipline’s definition of plagiarism being overturned by the college, not knowing the university reporting procedures, etc. It was clear we needed consistency and clarity. We also decided we wanted to focus less on policing, and to favor educating our students to prevent future plagiarism. You could probably guess that this led to a subcommittee (and the idea for my PIE). Our subcommittee created a standard definition of plagiarism that went into all syllabi, a writing workshop on plagiarism, a quiz, a contract for students, a flow chart of how to report plagiarism, and class activities to teach the identification of proper paraphrasing and citations. These materials (Lamoreaux, Darnell, Sheehan, & Tusher, 2012) are publicly available on the Society for Teaching of Psychology website (http://teachpsych.org/Resources/Documents/otrp/resources/plagiarism/Educating%20Students%20about%20Plagiarism.pdf).

At my PIE, I asked other faculty how they educated their students about plagiarism. Below are the techniques they listed:

a quiz on plagiarism;
a quiz on student handbook;
list policies in the syllabus on paraphrasing and/or a link to school policy;
discussion on the first day of class;
starting early in introductory classes or freshman year before students are allowed to register for classes; and
using technology (e.g. Turnitin or SafeAssign).

One quiz recommended by multiple instructors is available through Indiana University, and can be found at https://www.indiana.edu/~istd/. At this site, students can complete a tutorial on plagiarism, see examples, take a quiz, and get a certificate of completion. My department uses this site as a part of our plagiarism training for students.

A lot of us put policies on plagiarism in the syllabus and reference it on the first day of class; however, this alone is not enough. First, we can’t always rely on students to read it or to follow a link to the university policy. Second, we can’t assume they will understand the policy. Gullifer and Tyson (2010) present data demonstrating students have a great deal of confusion over what constitutes plagiarism despite online access to a policy. Students in their study also reported wanting education on plagiarism. These findings are also corroborated by data from Holt (2012).

Holt provided basic information about plagiarism to a control group of students and training in paraphrasing to an intervention group. The control group received a definition of plagiarism in the syllabus, a link to the university policy, one example of proper paraphrasing, and a 10-minute demonstration of improper phrasing in class. The intervention group received training in paraphrasing and proper citations, along with assignments in class. As you might expect, the group with additional training was able to identify plagiarism more accurately than those without training. This study identified reasons for unintentional plagiarism as well. For example, students thought that quotations were not needed or materials didn’t have to be paraphrased if a citation was provided.

Something as simple as a weekly paraphrasing activity can help. For 6 weeks of the semester, Barry (2006) gave students a paragraph from a famous developmental theorist. Students had to paraphrase the passage and provide a proper citation. After completing the activity, students’ definitions of plagiarism were more complex than those offered at the onset of the study. Not only did they define plagiarism as “taking someone else’s idea”, they added “not giving credit” to their definition. This isn’t necessarily evidence that this activity would reduce the number plagiarism cases, but it is evidence of students gaining a better understanding of plagiarism.

You could also incorporate plagiarism as a theme in your course. Estow, Lawrence, and Adams (2011) designed a research methods class where the assignments and projects in the class related to the topic of plagiarism. For example, their students designed a survey about plagiarism, collected data, and wrote a research report on their findings in one set of assignments. The researchers compared the progress of this class to one with the same assignments but a different theme. The students in the plagiarism-themed course were able to better identify plagiarism and generate more strategies for avoiding plagiarism.

Plagiarism is scary, for both professionals and students. The consequences can be steep. It has resulted in failed assignments, expulsion from school, revoked degrees, and even ended careers. Students often tell me how terrified they are of unintentional plagiarism; Gullifer and Tyson’s participants also expressed fear of unintentional plagiarism and the consequences of plagiarism. Implementing some of these fairly simple ideas in our courses will enhance our students understanding of plagiarism. A better-informed student should be less fearful, more confident in their ability to write, and less likely to plagiarize.

References

American Psychological Association. (2007). APA guidelines for the undergraduate psychology major. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ed/precollege/about/psymajor-guidelines.pdf

Barry, E. (2006). Can paraphrasing practice help students define plagiarism? College Student Journal, 40(2), 377-384.

Estow, S., Lawrence, E. K., & Adams, K.A. (2011). Practice makes perfect: Improving students’ skills in understanding and avoiding plagiarism with a themed methods course. Teaching of Psychology, 38(4), 255-258.

Gullifer, J., & Tyson, G.A. (2010). Exploring university students’ perceptions of plagiarism: A focus group study. Studies in Higher Education, 35(4), 463-481.

Holt, E. (2012). Education improves plagiarism detection by biology undergraduates. BioScience, 62(6), 585-592.

Lamoreaux, M., Darnell, K., Sheehan, E., & Tusher, C. (2012). Educating students about plagiarism. Retrieved from Office of Teaching Resources in Psychology for Society for the Teaching of Psychology website: http://teachpsych.org/Resources/Documents/otrp/resources/plagiarism/Educating Students about Plagiarism.pdf

Sheehan, E. A. (2013, January). Kick plagiarism to the curb: How to educate students before they head down that road. Participant Idea Exchange conducted at the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology, St. Pete Beach, Fl.

Stowers, R. H., & Hummel, J. Y. (2011) The use of technology to combat plagiarism in business communication classes. Business Communication Quarterly, 74(2), 164-169.

Elizabeth Sheehan is a Lecturer at Georgia State University. She earned her PhD in Psychology from Emory University in Cognition and Development. She currently teaches Intro Psychology, an integrated version of Research Methods and Statistics, and Forensic Psychology. She has presented her work on designing study abroad programs, teaching with technology, and incorporating writing assignments into courses at teaching conferences, such as the Southeastern Conference on Teaching of Psychology and the Developmental Science Teaching Institute for the Society for Research in Child Development.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Supporting Students Using Balanced In-Class Small Groups

(Past member) — Tue, 01 Aug 2017 12:36:31 GMT

Supporting Students Using Balanced In-Class Small Groups

Hung-Tao Michael Chen

Eastern Kentucky University

The usage of in-class small groups has been shown to improve students’ learning experience (Johnson & Johnson, 2002). Although many studies have demonstrated this effect, few studies have looked at how the specific composition of group members could support students who are at risk of dropping out from college. This essay describes a pilot study that uses the College Persistence Questionnaire to group students (Davidson, Beck & Milligan, 2009). Preliminary results are inconclusive, showing that high performing students might be benefitting more from the small groups than low performing students.

Creating Small Groups in the Classroom

Student persistence has been one of the greatest challenges faced in higher education (Seidman, 2005; Tinto, 2006; Tinto 2010). While many researchers have identified students who are at risk of dropping out and proposed intervention strategies, few have looked at the effectiveness of balanced in-class small groups to promote peer networking and support. Conventionally, most instructors who use small groups in the classroom would form the groups by random selection or allow the students to form their own groups. The author of this essay proposes, instead, to form the small groups by first identifying students who have high risk of dropping out from college and group these students with those who are not at risk. These “balanced” small groups should provide students with greater peer support in the classroom.

We have all encountered students who are underperforming in the classroom and are at risk of dropping out. Factors that include personal, cultural, economic, and social forces all affect a student’s ability to persist in college (Tinto, 2006). Strategies such as building learning communities and cohort systems have been implemented by many universities to improve student retention rate (Tinto, 2010). The problem with many of these retention strategies is that they generally require institutional support and substantial financial backing to ensure success and longevity. Is there a strategy that an instructor could easily implement in the classroom, does not require major course re-design and does not require financial support?

One strategy that only requires a small investment from the instructor is the usage of balanced small groups in the classroom. The usage of small groups in the classroom is not a new idea and it has proven to be an effective way of promoting learning (Johnson & Johnson, 2002, 2015). Past research has also shown that peer support would increase a student’s college persistence (Eckles & Stradely, 2012; Skahill, 2002). However, not much research has been done to address the usage of small groups to support students who are at risk of dropping out from college. When students are randomly grouped or form groups of their own, there will inevitably be a few groups that are comprised of students who are all at high risk of dropping out. The idea behind the balanced small groups is simple—students who are at high risk and low risk of dropping out should be evenly distributed across all groups. If the cognitive and social mechanisms behind the effectiveness of small groups hold true, then students who are at lower risk of dropping out should be able to support and anchor students who are at higher risk of dropping out. This idea is based on the social interdependence theory that people, when placed in cooperative groups with a positive environment, will help each other to achieve a common goal (Johsons & Johnson, 2015).

Implementing and Evaluating the Idea

The first step in creating balanced small groups is to identify and classify students who are at high risk, moderate risk, and low risk of dropping out. The author of this essay used a modified version of the College Persistence Questionnaire (CPQ) to gauge students’ likelihood of persisting in college at the beginning of the semester (Davidson, Beck & Milligan, 2009). The original CPQ by Davidson and colleagues was modified to fit the specific characteristics of the author’s home institution. The modified questionnaire was built in Qualtrics and distributed to the students at the beginning of the semester. It should be noted that the author of this essay adopted a “flipped classroom” teaching model, where at least half of the class period involved small group problem solving (Lage, Platt & Treglia, 2000). The students had to work together to solve short answer questions and multiple choice quizzes. Each group had to turn in one copy of the short answer worksheet and one copy of the multiple choice quiz at the end of every class period. The in-person class met twice a week for 75 minutes each. The first 30 minutes of the class was in the form of a lecture with interactive clicker questions. The other 45 minutes was used to solve an in-class worksheet and a multiple choice quiz question in groups of four. Students were allowed to use their notes while solving the worksheet but they were not allowed to use their notes while completing the multiple choice quiz during the final fifteen minutes of class. A total of four undergraduate teaching assistants who were not enrolled in the specific class assisted with the small group problem solving portion of the class.

After students’ response for the CPQ had been collected, the author calculated a cumulative score for each student based on the student’s response on the questionnaire. The students were then divided into four categories: those in the bottom 25^th percentile, those in the 26^th-50^th percentile, those in the 51^st to 75^th percentile, and those in the top 76^th percentile. Those in the top 76^th percentile were students who were at very low risk of dropping out, those in the bottom 25^th percentile were the ones who were at high risk of dropping out. The class had a total of 80 students; half of the students were put into balanced small groups using their CPQ scores and half of the students were placed into small groups randomly, regardless of their CPQ score. Each group had four students. The balanced groups one student from each of the four CPQ categories; the random groups were created based on student ID number. The students stayed in the same group throughout the semester and they were encouraged to collaborate with each other. The author of this essay used a variety of bonus points and team building tasks throughout the semester to help the students foster a positive and cooperative learning environment (Johnson & Johnson 2015).

This method of balanced small groups was first piloted during the Spring 2015 semester at a large state university. The results were inconclusive because the comparison between the random groups and the balanced groups did not yield any significant difference. The general trend of the means, however, seemed to show that students who were already at low risk of dropping out were benefitting more from the balanced small groups than students who were at high risk of dropping out. Future studies should probably compare balanced groups with students of varying risk levels, against matched groups where students of similar risk levels were grouped together. Qualitative data and survey data should also be gathered in addition to student performance data. There was also the concern that the balanced-group manipulation appeared to benefit the higher performing students more than the lower performing students who were at high risk of dropping out. This was probably a result of social loafing effect where the high performing students were doing most of the work in the class. The worksheets and the quizzes were graded per group but they should have been issued and graded on an individual basis. Future studies should design the assessments such that every student is held equally responsible. This way, any effect of social loafing should be minimized.

Author’s note: This essay was based on a study presented at a poster session at the Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s 15^th Annual Conference. Decatur, GA, October 2016.

References

Davidson, W. B., Beck, H. P., & Milligan, M. (2009). The College Persistence Questionnaire: Development and validation of an instrument that predicts student attrition. Journal of College Student Development, 50(4), 373-390.

Eckles, J. E., & Stradley, E. G. (2012). A social network analysis of student retention using archival data. Social Psychology of Education, 15(2), 165-180.

Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. T. (2002). Learning together and alone: Overview and meta‐analysis. Asia Pacific Journal of Education, 22(1), 95-105.

Johnson, D. W., & Johnson, R. T. (2015). Theoretical approaches to cooperative learning. In R. Gillies (Ed.), Collaborative learning: Developments in research and practice (pp. 17-46). New York: Nova.

Lage, M. J., Platt, G. J., & Treglia, M. (2000). Inverting the classroom: A gateway to creating an inclusive learning environment. The Journal of Economic Education, 31(1), 30-43.

Seidman, A. (2005). College student retention: Formula for student success (ACE/Praeger series on higher education; American Council on Education/Praeger series on higher education). Westport, CT: Praeger Publishers.

Skahill, M. P. (2002). The role of social support network in college persistence among freshman students. The Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory, and Practice, 4(1), 39–52.

Tinto, V. (2006). Research and practice of student retention: what next?. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 8(1), 1-19.

Tinto, V. (2010). From theory to action: Exploring the institutional conditions for student retention. In J. C. Smart (Ed.), Higher education: Handbook of theory and research (pp. 51-89). Netherlands: Springer.

H.-T. Michael Chen is an Assistant Professor of Psychology at Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond, KY. He graduated from Berea College with a degree in Biology, and earned his M.S. and Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of Kentucky. He teaches courses in research methods, cognition, and human factors. His research interests include teaching strategies in the classroom and the design of better educational technologies.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: STP’s SoTL Writing Workshop: A.K.A. How I Wrote a Paper in Two Days

(Past member) — Sun, 16 Jul 2017 17:29:19 GMT

STP’s SoTL Writing Workshop: A.K.A. How I Wrote a Paper in Two Days

Michelle A. Drouin

Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne

In this paper, I describe my experiences with the Society for the Teaching of Psychology’s (STP) Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Writing Workshop. I first describe the obstacles preventing me from joining such efforts and then describe the process and structure of STP’s Writing Workshop. As a result of my participation, I not only wrote a manuscript from (practically) start to finish in two days, but I also finished three other SoTL papers and developed and implemented a SoTL Writing Retreat on my own campus.

It is very difficult to say “no” to Regan Gurung. He is charming and charismatic, and as the former President of STP, he is kind of a psychology celebrity. So in May, 2012, when Regan invited me to apply to the STP’s Scholarship of Teaching and Learning (SoTL) Writing Workshop (www.teachpsych.org/conferences/writing/index.php#.UcpdcZzNnUk), try as I might, I could not say “no.”

“But it’s hard for me to travel,” I said. “I have two young children, five and three.”

“Perfect! Mine are six and four,” Regan responded.

“I actually have a lot of projects going on, so I am really doing well on my SoTL writing,” I countered.

Regan smiled, “Are they finished? You owe it to teachers and students everywhere to get them out.”

“Teachers and students everywhere?” I pondered, “That’s a lot of people depending on me... .”

“Ok, I’m in” I replied.

Thus began my journey with STP’s SoTL Writing Workshop.

The Obstacles

As I look back on that day, I can clearly identify the obstacles that were keeping me from engaging in writing workshops generally and this one specifically:

I thought I had SoTL writing figured out. I had a few SoTL research papers published and had written two invited book chapters. Although I did not consider myself an expert in SoTL, I was certainly one of the SoTL leaders at my university. I knew I could do the work, so I really did not know what the SoTL Writing Workshop could do for me.
I did not think I had the time for a workshop. I was already time pressed—hence the many unfinished projects—so how would I find the time to travel and participate in a workshop?
I thought that unfinished projects were a normal part of academic life. My colleague (who has been in his position for 9 years) still has an unfinished project from graduate school. I have many unfinished projects, and as the years go by, that list is growing, especially for SoTL projects. I accepted this as a normal part of my academic journey.
I am actually a good, prolific writer. I don’t struggle with writing. I spend much of my academic work time writing both disciplinary and pedagogical papers, and I am successful in getting my work published. According to the 2010-11 UCLA Higher Education Research Institute Faculty Survey, only about 20% of faculty at all baccalaureate institutions had five or more papers accepted or published in the last two years (Hurtado, Eagan, Pryor, Whang, & Tran, 2012), and I am pleased to say that I am in that 20%.

Engaging

Despite my many internal protests, I engaged. Two weeks later, I was describing via email my various unfinished SoTL projects to my three fellow group members and reading Optimizing Teaching and Learning: Practicing Pedagogical Research (Gurung & Schwartz, 2009), which Regan sent to workshop participants. I was also learning more about the workshop through email and had received a participant timeline with “soft deadlines to make the workshop most effective”:

May: Introductions and basic idea sharing.

June-August: Preliminary consultations.

August 30th: Project proposal/status—Write a 1-2 page proposal for the topics you would like to research. If there is data collected, then list key hypotheses driving the study and draft a method section.

September 15th: Complete a preliminary literature search for articles relating to topic of interest or study conducted (outline Intro section).

Oct 1st: Final report on activity/project status due to Mentors.

(R. Gurung, personal communication, May 29, 2012)

Through this email correspondence, I also learned two important things: (1) that the mentors would provide follow-up consultations and draft reading (or other types of assistance) post-workshop, and (2) that the goal of the workshop was to have a SoTL publication submitted by the end of the 2012-13 academic year. As I hoped to finish at least one of my papers by that deadline, I thought this was a realistic goal for me. However, one of the hurdles I faced during my preliminary consultations with Regan was trying to decide which of my many projects to bring to the workshop.

Getting Organized

At the time of our initial correspondence, I had SEVEN unfinished SoTL projects. I was already in the writing phase of an online lecture paper and decided to finish that one outside of the SoTL writing workshop; the workshop only accelerated my timeline. Thereafter, I turned my focus to three others: an iPad project, an online decision tree for psychology majors project, and a lecture capture project. In preparation for the August 30deadline, I was overzealous and finished and submitted the decision tree paper, which left me with five papers to complete and nothing firm to bring to the writing workshop. At this point I had to reassess and emailed Regan in desperation—“what project should I now bring to the SoTL writing workshop?”

Regan replied, “Given that you are progressing well, how about you aim to send a plan of what YOU hope to have done on EACH of the 3-4 topics. A few sentences on each so you have a clear picture of goals.” (R. Gurung, personal communication, August 29, 2012).

At this point, I finally committed to paper the goals I had for my various SoTL writing projects and constructed a table that would guide me through the rest of the process. In this table, I listed my five unfinished projects and the goals I had for them for the October workshop (summarized here):

iPad cohort & lecture capture projects: Data analyzed; results and methods sections written, literature review mostly done
Research assistantship, blogs as learning tools, and research review and presentation projects: Data cleaned; sources gathered

Creating this table gave me clarity. This was the first time in my academic career that I had actually listed all of my ongoing projects and created goals for each. Until this point, the projects were all quite nebulous—I did not even know how many unfinished SoTL projects I had. After I created the table, I had a visual reminder of my goals, and this was a breakthrough. As I thought about my goals, I knew that if I could arrive at the writing workshop with at least cleaned data sets and relevant sources gathered, I would be able to make the most of the personalized statistical consultations and also be able to get advice on publication. Minimally, this is what I hoped to accomplish, and in the end, this is what I had accomplished when I boarded the plane for Atlanta in October, 2012.

Attending the Conference

Early in my career, I heard a rumor about two professors who would get together and complete manuscripts (from start to finish) in a weekend. I remember the questions that rushed through my head at the time—“How did they do it? What did they do to prepare for this writing extravaganza? Did they each work independently, or did they work collaboratively?” Because the source of this rumor had so few answers, I dismissed it as urban legend. However, now I know that this feat can be accomplished.

When I arrived in Atlanta for the SoTL writing conference, I had 733 words (mostly methods), a cleaned data set, and sources gathered for a manuscript on the effects of using lecture capture in an introductory psychology course. I focused on this paper because after cleaning the data sets of three other projects (research assistantship, blogs, and research review), I decided I needed to collect more data. Meanwhile, although I had enough data for the iPad project, it was not specific enough to psychology to make use of the mentorship I was about to receive. Thus, my lecture capture project became my official SoTL workshop baby.

The SoTL writing conference runs concurrently with STP’s Best Practices Conference, so we were able to attend the keynote addresses for the Best Practices Conference; however, the rest of the time we were to devote ourselves to our SoTL projects. The structure of the conference was:

Day 1: Evening arrival, dinner, presentation on doing SoTL research by Regan Gurung, large-group introductions with explanations of our SoTL projects.

Day 2: Writing, individual consultations with mentor, individual consultations with statistician and ToP editor.

Day 3: Writing, presentation by Drew Christopher (Editor, Teaching of Psychology) on getting published, departure in the afternoon.

I spent most of my time writing, in the hotel lobby, side by side with other workshop participants, pausing at times to ask them their feedback on something that I had written but mostly just in my own private writing abyss. I had a few consultations with Regan, where he pointed me to relevant sources and asked me to include additional information. I talked through my statistical analyses with Georjeanna Wilson-Doenges, who helped me see that what I was actually proposing was a mediation model. And I also spoke at length with Drew Christopher, who encouraged us all to be tenacious with our papers. When I boarded the plane to go home, I had 5,697 words and a paper that was nearly complete. A few days later, I sent it to Regan for feedback, and approximately one week later, I sent it out for review.

Results

A few months later, my paper (Drouin, 2014) was accepted with minor revisions for publication in Teaching of Psychology. However, this was not the only positive outcome of my SoTL writing workshop experience. Two other papers I prepared as part of this process (lecture format study and iPad project) have now been accepted for publication, and I am currently revising another (online decision tree) in response to a revise and resubmit decision. This is the greatest number of SoTL papers I have even written in a one-year time frame and is equivalent to the number of SoTL articles I had accepted before I joined this workshop.

These accomplishments are overshadowed though by my biggest take-home of the conference. In May, 2013, just one year after my initial conversation with Regan, I coordinated my own SoTL Writing Retreat on my campus. We had 12 participants, working side-by-side with four experienced SoTL mentors, a statistical consultant, and librarians, who assisted with source gathering and finding publication venues. Sponsored by IPFW's Committee for the Advancement of Scholarly Teaching and Learning Excellence, this SoTL writing retreat was the first of its kind on our campus and was a great success. Although I did not follow the STP Writing Workshop model exactly (e.g., due to time constraints, we did not provide consultations in advance, and we also did not create a firm structure for follow-up consultations), we included key elements that were helpful in making the workshop a success for me. More specifically:

We had an application process. Participants were asked to describe the projects they were working on, where they were in the process, and what they hoped to accomplish during the retreat.
Participants were paired with mentors who had knowledge of the content area or data collection method. Based on the applications, we formed mini-groups composed of people who were working on similar projects or using similar data collection methods, and we matched mentors with writers on this basis.
The writing retreat lasted only two days. Longer writing workshops or writing lockdowns that have meetings over weeks or months, like those highlighted by Belcher (2009) or Jakobsen and Lee (2012), certainly have their strengths, but my university already had writing groups, and I had never engaged because I feared the long commitment. Workshops of a limited duration are perfect for commitment-phobes like me, and because this model had worked for me with STP’s workshop, I wanted others to be able to experience this model.
It was a retreat, with large chunks of time devoted to writing. We had only two short workshops on IRB proposals and publication venues; the rest of the time was devoted to manuscript writing or other types of SoTL writing activities (e.g., writing an IRB proposal, writing out a plan for the research).

Feedback on the workshop was overwhelmingly positive, but I did have suggestions to do more preparatory work with participants before the retreat, which aligns well with STP’s model. Overall, participants appreciated the time devoted exclusively to working on their projects and the synergy we created during those two days in the campus library. It was inspirational for me, and in a sense, I felt that I was paying it forward.

As I closed the writing workshop, I chose my words carefully: Echoes of a year before and foreshadowing for the essay you are now reading— “This is important work. You owe it to students and teachers everywhere to get it out.”

References

Drouin, M. (2014). If you record it, some won’t come: Using lecture capture in introductory psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 41(1), 11-19.

Hurtado, S., Eagan, M. K., Pryor, J. H., Whang, H., & Tran, S. (2012). Undergraduate teaching faculty: The 2010–2011 HERI Faculty Survey. Los Angeles: Higher Education Research Institute, UCLA.

Gurung, R. A. R., & Schwartz, E. (2009).Optimizing teaching and learning: Pedagogical research in practice. Malden, MA: Blackwell.

Jakobsen, K. V., & Lee, M. R. (2012). Faculty writing lockdowns. In J. Holmes, S.C. Baker, & J. R. Stowell (Eds.), Essays from E-xcellence in Teaching (Vol. 11, pp. 26–29). Retrieved from the Society for the Teaching of Psychology Web site: http://teachpsych.org/ebooks/eit2011/index.php

Michelle Drouin earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology from Cornell University and her DPhil in Experimental Psychology from University of Oxford, England. She is an associate professor of psychology at Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne and teaches courses in introductory psychology, developmental psychology (child and lifespan), social and personality development, and language development. Her research, both disciplinary and pedagogical, is focused on literacy, language, and the ways in which technology affects communication and learning. She has written numerous pedagogical papers and invited book chapters focused mainly on online teaching and the integration of technology in the classroom.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Flipped out: Methods and outcomes of flipping abnormal psychology

(Past member) — Sun, 02 Jul 2017 20:41:26 GMT

Flipped out: Methods and outcomes of flipping abnormal psychology

Amanda K Sommerfeld, Ph.D.
Washington College

The Background

Abnormal psychology is taught in virtually every undergraduate psychology department across country (Perlman & McCann, 1999). However, despite its popularity, the course is not immune from critiques. Like many college courses, abnormal psychology is often lecture-based (Benjamin, 2002). Although such a pedagogical approach is popular among faculty because of its effectiveness in maximizing content delivery (Kendra, Cattaneo, & Mohr, 2012), in some cases lectures also may be less effective than other methods for promoting learning (c.f., Halonen, 2005).

Abnormal psychology courses have also been critiqued as lacking both context and nuance. As Norcross, Sommer, and Clifford (2001) note, in abnormal psychology classes, “the painful human experience of psychopathology is frequently overshadowed by descriptions of disembodied symptoms and impersonal treatment” (p. 126). As a result, despite many professors’ intentions to use abnormal psychology courses to decrease stigma (Kendra et al., 2012) and increase student understanding of the contextual factors that shape psychiatric conditions (Lafosse & Zinser, 2002), courses may fall short of these desired outcomes. That was certainly my experience when I first taught abnormal psychology.

The Issue

Psychopathology I (PSY 233) is a core course for students who are majoring in psychology with a clinical/counseling concentration at my college. Because of this, as well as the content, the class is frequently filled to capacity (40 students). When I inherited the class in Fall 2014, I kept using what Benjamin (2002) refers to as “the Velveeta (cheese) of teaching methods” (p. 57), otherwise known as a lecture-centered approach (which is comparable to the cheesy foodstuff in that despite the fact that no one admits to liking it, it remains the most popular pedagogical approach; Halonen, 2005). I enhanced the class with media critiques, group projects, and in-class discussions, however class time remained lecture-driven.

According to my students the course was successful. Students gave high ratings on course evaluation items (rated from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree) such as “The use of teaching aids was effective” (μ=4.9) and “The instructor answered questions in class in a patient and helpful manner“ (μ=4.9). Students’ qualitative feedback supported these ratings.

Despite this positive feedback, I was dissatisfied with several aspects of the course. For example, lower student ratings on items such as, “I learned a great deal in this class” (μ=4.6) and “The course raised challenging questions or issues” (μ=4.6), led me to wonder if students were basing their assessments on how much they liked the course rather than their actual learning. What is more, at the end of the semester I didn’t feel confident that I’d met my objective of challenging students to consider how cultural norms and biases contribute to psychiatric conditions. As a result, I was left with the sense that, because of the format, I had reduced the course content to a list of diagnostic criteria, leaving little time for acknowledging symptom variation, challenging stereotypes, or encouraging the development of advocacy attitudes. To combat these shortcomings, I decided to change the class radically, and, with the support of a grant from my college’s Cromwell Center for Teaching and Learning, I flipped—or inverted—the class.

The Solution

There is no single definition of flipped instruction (He, Holton, Farkas, & Warschauer, 2016). However, the underlying intent of the approach is to move lecture-based material outside of class, leaving in-class time for “face to face engagement between students and teachers” (Forsey, Low, & Glance, 2013, p. 472). This is commonly achieved by delivering course content before class meetings using recorded lectures, podcasts, or videos. Material is then applied during face-to-face meetings through discussions, activities, and hands-on demonstrations.

To date, the research on flipped instruction is incomplete. As O’Flaherty and Phillips (2015) note, few studies have “actually demonstrated robust evidence to support that the flipped learning approach is more effective than conventional teaching methods” (p. 94). Despite this, anecdotal evidence is encouraging, with some studies claiming that flipped instruction results in greater student engagement (c.f., Jamaludin & Osman, 2014) and higher test scores and overall grades (c.f., Mason, Shuman, & Cook, 2013). Based on this available evidence, and the issues that I observed in the first iteration of Psychopathology I, flipping the class seemed a worthwhile venture.

The Implementation

Flipping Psychopathology I required me to create two sets of materials: out-of-class and in-class. The bulk of class content (i.e., diagnostic criteria, prevalence rates, treatment approaches, etc.) was delivered outside of class through video lectures that were uploaded to the course’s online learning platform. For the first iteration of the flipped course, these lectures were simple, with my voice recorded over PowerPoint slides using SnagIt. These videos were limited to ten minutes so students could easily review information. Prior to class students were required to watch between one and three videos and complete an online quiz. The quizzes were intended to encourage mastery, so students were able to repeat the quizzes multiple times.

In-class time was focused on application and discussion (Pluta, Richards, & Mutnick, 2012). This required me to create individual and group activities for each class meeting. Sample activities included having students evaluate media depictions of psychiatric disorders for accuracy, writing vignettes of imaginary clients, and discussing the systemic factors that affect how clients manifest symptoms.

I evaluated the effectiveness of the flipped versus traditional instruction based on data collected at two times: following a lecture-based course in Fall 2014 (N=27) and following a flipped-style course in Fall 2015 (N=34). Data I collected at both points in time included student test scores and grades, student course evaluations, student responses to questions developed for the Web Learning Project (Calderon, Ginsberg, & Ciabocchi, 2012), and instructor reflections.

The Outcomes

Data from the traditional and flipped offerings of Psychopathology I suggested the pedagogical change affected outcomes in three domains: student learning, student engagement, and instructor experience.

Impacts on student learning

Researchers suggest that flipped instruction is successful because students are able to learn and review pre-class material on their own time and at their own pace (McDonald & Smith, 2013). Many of my students agreed with this assessment, sharing on course evaluations that, “I like how the videos were before class. It allowed for deeper understanding of the material because I can pause, write down questions, and review as needed.” Accordingly, students also rated the “adequacy of resources” as significantly higher than students in the lecture class (t(54)=-2.11, p=.04).

In opposition to the literature, the accessibility of material outside of class did not translate into higher grades for my students. In fact, although there were no significant differences in final grades between the two classes, students in the flipped class had significantly lower exam grades than students in the lecture-based class (t(58)=2.42, p=.02). What is more, student responses to the item “I learned a lot in this course” were lower in the flipped course (μ=4.3) than in the lecture course (μ=4.6).

It is possible that some of the student learning drawbacks of the flipped class were related to perceptions of the difficulty of the course. In comparison to students in the lecture class, students in the flipped class rated the course as having a significantly higher “workload” (t(56)=-6.02, p=.00) and being more “difficult” (t(55)=-3.19, p=.00). Further, student qualitative feedback reinforced these ratings, suggesting the flipped style made learning more difficult for some students.

This perception runs contrary to previous studies that have suggested students perceive flipped courses as less difficult than courses taught using traditional methods (He et al., 2016). However similar to previous research (c.f., O’Flaherty & Phillips, 2015), students in my flipped course suggested the difficulty predominantly stemmed from the increased responsibility they felt: “The flip style makes learning just a little bit harder because it puts all the responsibility on what you do outside of the classroom.”

Impacts on student engagement

The fundamental purpose behind flipped instruction is to use in-class time for active learning. Given this, some of the feedback from students in the flipped class led me to question the effectiveness of my in-class activities. For example, students in the flipped course rated the “learning value of in-class materials” significantly lower than students in the lecture course (t(56)=2.326, p=.02). These data were supported by comments such as, “class meetings are interesting but not necessarily informative.”

Based on these data, it seems that my implementation of flipped pedagogy may have fallen short because of how I structured face-to-face meetings. It may be that, similar to O’Flaherty and Phillips’ (2015) findings in their scoping review, I failed to explain the link between the pre-class activities and the face-to-face sessions. As a result, the in-class material may not have engaged the students.

With that said, data also suggested students interacted more in the flipped class, which may have facilitated student engagement. For example, students in the flipped course rated the amount and quality of “interaction with other students” as significantly greater than students in the lecture course (t(56)=-6.06, p=.00). Student comments reinforced these data, with one student noting, “I like that we get more time to ask questions in class,” and another mentioning that “the interaction during class time helps to solidify the information.”

Impact on instructor

Researchers who study flipped instruction routinely note how demanding it is on instructors. That was certainly my experience in flipping Psychopathology I. Similar to other instructors’ experiences, it took considerable planning and preparation for me to design engaging, interactive in-class activities (c.f., Mason et al., 2013). A great deal of lead-in time was also required to record and edit lectures in advance of class meetings.

The process of making the videos was also complicated by the limited technical support available to me. Although I consulted with members of the academic technology team at my institution, they did not have the time or resources to help me record or edit the videos. As a result, I had to learn how to use the software and troubleshoot issues on my own. Perhaps because of the amount of time and expertise required to create even simple videos, it is not surprising that researchers have recommended having a support staff or technical team available (c.f., Ferreri & O’Connor, 2013).

Despite these issues, I also found the flipped course had multiple strengths. Most importantly, because students could access and review the lectures before class meetings they were less concerned with taking notes in class. This freed up the students to listen to their classmates, contribute to discussions, and engage fully in activities. As a result, a greater proportion of students participated in the flipped versus the traditional class.

Finally, I also found the flipped class provided students with increased opportunities to consider more nuanced issues related to psychiatric disorders. In particular, because the students were introduced to diagnostic criteria and prevalence rates prior to class, they were more prepared to apply and critique that material in class, opening up discussions about stigma, social norms, and systemic forms of privilege and oppression that affect psychological health and illness.

The conclusions

The flipped version of Psychopathology I had both strengths and weaknesses. Students appreciated the opportunities for review that the flipped style provided, were better able to consider the nuances of psychiatric conditions, and were more engaged during in-class meetings. On the other hand, some students reported the flipped style made learning more difficult and I found the flipped course took more time to prepare. Given these data, it is not possible to say flipping Psychopathology I improved the course as a whole, at least not after the first offering. However, with revision the flipped course could hold considerable promise to help students develop more critical perspectives on topics relevant to abnormal psychology.

References

Benjamin, L. (2002). Lecturing. In S.F. Davis & W. Buskist (Eds.), The teaching of psychology: Essays in honor of Wilbert J. McKeachie and Charles L. Brewer. Mahwah, NH: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc.

Calderon, O., Ginsberg, A.P., & Ciabocchi, L. (2012). Multidimensional assessment of pilot blended learning programs: Maximizing program effectiveness based on student and faculty feedback. Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks, 16(3), 23-37.

Ferreri, S., & O'Connor (2013). Instructional design and assessment: Redesign of a large lecture course into a small-group learning course. American Journal of Pharmaceutical Education, 77(1), 1–9.

Forsey, M., Low, M., & Glance, D. (2013). Flipping the sociology classroom: Towards a practice of online pedagogy. Journal of Sociology, 49(4), 471-485.

Halonen, J.S. (2005). Abnormal psychology as liberating art and science. Journal of Social and Clinical Psychology, 24(1), 41-50.

He, W., Holton, A., Farkas, G., & Warschauer, M. (2016). The effects of flipped instruction on out-of-class study time, exam performance, and student perceptions. Learning and Instruction, 45, 61-71.

Jamaludin, R., & Osman, S. Z. (2014). The use of a flipped classroom to enhance engagement and promote active learning. Journal of Education and Practice, 5(2), 124–131.

Kendra, M.S., & Cattaneo, L.B., & Mohr, J.J. (2011). Teaching abnormal psychology to improve attitudes toward mental illness and help-seeking. Teaching of Psychology, 39(1), 57-61.

Lafosse, J.M., & Zinser, M.C. (2002. A case-conference exercise to facilitate understanding of paradigms in abnormal psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 29(3), 220-222.

Mason, G., Shuman, T., & Cook, K. (2013). Comparing the effectiveness of an inverted classroom to a traditional classroom in an upper-division engineering course. IEEE Transactions on Education, 56(4), 430–435.

McDonald, K., & Smith, C. M. (2013). The flipped classroom for professional development: Part I. Benefits and strategies. The Journal of Continuing Education in Nursing, 44(10), 437.

O’Flaherty, J., & Phillips, C. (2015). The use of flipped classrooms in higher education: A scoping review. Internet and Higher Education, 25, 85-95.

Norcross, J.C., Sommer, R., & Clifford, J.S. (2001). Incorporating published autobiographies into the abnormal psychology course. Teaching of Psychology, 28(2), 125-128.

Perlman, B., & McCann, L.I. (1999). The most frequently listed courses in the undergraduate psychology curriculum. Teaching of Psychology, 26(3), 177-182.

Pluta, W., Richards, B., & Mutnick, A. (2013). PBL and beyond: Trends in collaborative learning. Teaching and Learning in Medicine, 25(S1), S9–S16.

Using the iPad in your Academic Workflow: Best iPad Productivity Tools for your Classroom Practices

(Past member) — Thu, 15 Jun 2017 17:15:23 GMT

Using The iPad In Your Academic Workflow:
Best iPad Productivity Tools For Your Classroom Practices

David Berg, Ph.D.
Community College Of Philadelphia

This document is based on workshops I presented at 35th Annual National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology.

Introduction To “Using The iPad In Your Academic Workflow”
In the academic world, our workflow involves a number of different elements which may include planning and scheduling, project management, reading and writing, information management (gathering, sorting, storing), collaboration (students, colleagues, department, college, and organizations), participation in meetings and committees, and interfacing with cyberspace (email and web). We could add many more things to the list, however it’s best to emphasize that workflow for the iPad looks like old S→P→O Psychology. The workflow starts with the INPUT (stimulus) into the iPad from either your computer (via iTunes sync), from the cloud (via DropBox or WiFi), or from your thoughts and ideas. The workflow ends with the OUTPUT back to your computer, to the cloud, to a projector, or perhaps to a printer. OUTPUT can take many forms: written and marked-up documents, media (audio/video/artistic/photos), presentation materials, podcasts, collaborative documents, and so on. What goes on in the middle is the PROCESSING which entails the use of many interconnected tools or apps on the iPad itself -- the majority of this essay focuses on the Process.

iPad In The Classroom
Over the past two years or so, more and more faculty have been making use of the iPad as the “tool of choice” in their academic lives. As the iPad (and iOS) have matured, we’ve seen greater numbers adapting the device for their personal use. What about the iPad in the classroom? Beyond some simple usage, most faculty have not tapped the full potential of the iPad—still relying on laptops, smart carts, and the classroom smart podium (nice if your classroom has one). My favorite classroom is currently outfitted with 1976-era technology: a 27” wall-mounted monitor with attached VHS/DVD player (that works most of the time). Schlepping the smart cart from A/V services around the campus is a Herculean chore not for the faint of heart; getting all of the parts working and set up for class...well...resistance is futile!

So I made an executive decision. Though on a shoe string budget, I decided that I would not upgrade my old laptop but invest in the new tablet technology instead, and adapt it to both my classroom needs and my academic workflow. Mind you, I have a decent up-to-date desktop computer that provides a way around some of the content creation issues that come up regarding the use of tablet computing.

The next section is aimed at the professional user who wants to make the most out of using the iPad in the classroom. It does not cover classes in colleges that give everyone an iPad (we should only be so lucky), but rather how to make use of the iPad as your go-to-technology.

Issues:
The four biggest issues usually raised when we discuss using the iPad are: Content Creation vs. Consumption, Laptop vs. iPad, Device Integration, and College vs. High School teaching. When the original iPad was first released, it really functioned as a superb consumption device—great for personal use but lacking in many ways to create content. Times have changed! You can create to your heart’s content albeit with some limitations in a few areas; however, there isn’t much that you can’t do. Probably (for academics) the most serious limitations are in creating major presentations (PowerPoint and Keynote), developing large media projects, and other areas such as business applications (large excel spreadsheets and such). You can do these things, but not with the same ease as on a laptop or desktop computer.

Of course this brings us to the next issue of Laptop vs. iPad. The iPad excels as a portable device whether at college, in the classroom, at home, or for travel. In a classroom, the iPad can be connected to any monitor or projector with ease, and further it can be used as a whiteboard making for an interactive class. The laptop may be preferential in terms of data management, content creation of presentations and media, or for research and data. If you need to make a decision, think in terms of what your needs are rather than in terms of what device to buy. I have a wonderful desktop machine so I have given up my old laptop in favor of my iPad; when I retire, I will give up the desktop machine. If you do not have access to a good working computer, you might think about updating.

Once these first two issues get sorted out, you can then consider the third, Device Integration. NOT A PROBLEM. When the iPad first appeared, about the only way to get information in and out was through iTunes sync. Now, with the proliferation of cloud computing, the issue is no longer a difficulty. I prefer to connect my iPad to my computer every few days and use the sync apps-file sharing method in iTunes. However, many people prefer to use DropBox as their primary means of transferring information between their iPad and their Mac or PC. For specific types of documents, both Google and Microsoft have also introduced their own versions of the cloud for document syncing and collaboration.

Finally, high school Psychology teachers may have other responsibilities that college instructors don’t have to deal with, such as interfacing with an administrative network, putting together course lessons for five day/week classes, and making lesson plans available to supervisors. There are now a number of apps to facilitate these functions.

Fair Use Guidelines & Copyright Issues
We need to exercise great caution in what we download, copy, and/or display. Distribution of copyrighted materials is a serious issue but simply displaying the material may not be. There are strict copyright guidelines regarding such matters. Understanding the fair use guidelines and the exceptions is very important. My experience has been that an email asking permission is easily obtained and avoids many hassles. For an overall view, the Center For Social Media has provided a “best practices” paper dealing with copyright and provides a FAQs review (http://centerforsocialmedia.org/fair-use/related-materials/codes/code-best-practices-fair-use-online-video).

Accessories:
Some accessories are a must to make full use of the iPad. Choose among the categories based upon personal look, feel, and expense. Try before you buy is always best, so speak to other colleagues and friends to determine what works best for you. If you live near an Apple store or BestBuy then go play. If you cannot, then four reliable online sources for accessories are Amazon.com, Meritline.com, Buy.com, and Handhelditems.com. Must have accessories include:

Bluetooth Keyboard (stand-alone or in a folio case, approximately $50)
Folio style case or iPad cover (approximately $35)
Stylus (approximately $20) and Screen Cleaner (approximately $10)
Auxiliary speakers & headphone (range in price from $5 to $200)
Extra charger for office or auto (approximately $20)

Resources:
There are a few excellent websites that will be helpful for both workflow and classroom teaching with the iPad.

MIT Library Guide: a fabulous compilation of app suggestions (http://libguides.mit.edu/content.php?pid=174869&sid=1481857)
Perhaps the best resource for high school Psychology instructors is “iPad As”. (http://edtechteacher.org/index.php/teaching-technology/mobile-technology-apps/ipad-as)
Secrets For iPad (a useful tips app that costs $1 in the Apple App store)
iPad User Guide (a free iBook you can get from Apple’s iBooks store on the iPad)

What Do You Want To Do?
Probably the biggest question is “What do you actually want to do with your iPad?” This needs to be well thought out because it will entail investments of time, training, and some cash (for apps and accessories). I have arbitrarily divided the use of the iPad in both the workflow and the classroom into a number areas. These overlap and are by no means exhaustive. I’ve also listed apps that are highly rated in each category; some are free and others not. Check them out at the iTunes Store online or the App Store app on the iPad. Download the freebees and play. For those that cost, read the reviews and click the “most critical” in the reviews link before buying.

The Workflow and Classroom Categories & Specific Apps
Beginning and Ending the Workflow: Input and Output

Getting your documents into the iPad is a fairly straightforward procedure called syncing.

The two most popular and efficient ways are through iTunes sync and DropBox. Simply drag a file to DropBox on your computer (PC/Mac), and it will show up on your iPad (assuming that both are in the same wifi network). Once you have the document on the iPad, use the “open in” command to move the file to the appropriate app. Reversing this process moves the document back to your computer.

iTunes sync occurs when you attach your iPad to the computer. There is a window in iTunes that contains all of the apps that share your documents. Simply add your document into this window, and it will sync to your iPad. The reverse process updates the document which can then be saved.

The advantage of DropBox is that you don’t have to attach the iPad to the computer; further, you can set up folders to share with other people over any network. iTunes sync’s advantage is better organization and control of your documents. I prefer iTunes sync.

Output from the iPad is pretty much the reverse of the processes listed. In addition, we can add email and printing as output methods. While I list presentation and communication apps later, printing is a special case, because it can take several steps to print. Some apps are AIRPRINT enabled meaning that they will, without any extra steps, print to an AIRPRINT ENABLED PRINTER. All of the major manufactures make them so if you are purchasing a new printer, look this up in the specs. For those of us who do not need a new printer, several apps are available in the iTunes store that will enable you to use a printer in the same wifi network. Choose apps that have two versions: a lite (free and trial) as well as a paid version. Download the lite and give it a try. If it works, then purchase the full paid version. Loading the app onto the iPad, and the computer version on to your Mac or PC will enable you to print wirelessly over your network. There are several choices: I have used PrintCentral from Eurosmartz ($10) since the iPad came out (it was one of the first apps) and it works just fine for me.

Project and Task Management

This category includes apps useful for project and event planning. The particularly popular apps are those that use the built-in Calendar and Reminders; those of you who use Google’s apps may want to integrate the Google Calendar into your iPad use. Additionally for those who really like to have more control, there are numbers of To-Do apps (e.g., Wunderlist, which is free, and ToDo, which costs $5). If you want to do graphic layouts of projects, Popplet and Corkulous are quite good. For special presentations and projects, Exhibit A ($10) is worth investigating. (Costs of the apps below are listed with the app; free apps are denoted by “F”)

Project and Task Management Apps

Calendar (F)

Corkulous (F + $5)

Popplet Lite (F)

ToDo ($5)

Wunderlist (F)

Writing and Collaboration And Communication Tools and Apps
These apps include writing and note taking apps, grading papers, email, Skype, Google docs, Dropbox, Podcast and Screencast production, internet.

Apps to Substitute for MS Office and Note Taking

CloudOn (F)

DocsToGo ($10)

Google Docs (F)

Notability ($1)

Pages ($10)

Penultimate ($1)

Smart Office ($5)

SoundNote ($5)

.
Good Utilitarian Browsers

Chrome (F)

Life Browser ($1)

Safari (F)

Browsers That Play Flash

Photon ($5)

Puffin (F)

SkyFire ($3)

Utility Apps for Recording, Communications, Bar Code Reading

Dictate (F)

Display Recorder ($10)

FaceTime (F)

i-nigma (F) (QR codes)

Skype (F)

Twitter (F)

Utilities for Printing

PrintCentral ($10)


Utilities for Displaying

Reflector ($15)

Splashtop ($2)

Finding WiFi

Wi-Fi Finder (F)

Information Management
These apps include textbooks, readers, database for information materials, lecture note replacement, and pdf readers/annotators.

Apps for information storage -- A personal file cabinet

DropBox (F)

EverNote (basic app is free, there is also a premium version for $5/month)

Exhibit A ($10)

GoodReader ($5)

Google Drive (F)

WebPage Storage Apps (Read webpages offline without an internet connection)

Instapaper ($4)

JotNot ($2)

Offline Pages ($5)

Pocket (F)

Safari (F)

Research and Reading and Reference

APA Journals (F) (priced by subscription)

CourseSmart (F) (books – prices vary)

Inkling (F) (books – prices vary)

Mendeley Lite (F)

Wolfram Alpha ($5)

PDF annotation, Pdf readers, Book Readers

iAnnotate ($10)

iBooks (F)

Kindle (F)

neu.Annotate+ ($2)

Nook (F)

Presentations
Apps to use for Presentations, Whiteboard, Digital Jukebox, Survey and Polls (without clickers). For a digital jukebox use GoodReader, Keynote, or any app that will play PowerPoint Slides

GoodReader ($5)
Keynote (F$10)
Lecture Tools (F)
Poll Everywhere (F+)
SlideShark (F)

Classroom Management
This category includes apps that are used for organizing the class such as calendars, grade books and attendance (roll book). If working with these types of apps feels cumbersome, then setting up a spreadsheet grade book on your computer and transferring it to the iPad may be a good choice. (I personally use the spreadsheet methods but some faculty like an all-in-one app.)

Calendar (F)

Google Calendar (F)

Numbers ($10) (an office spreadsheet)

Reminders (F)

ToDo ($5)

Wunderlist (F)

The following are specific apps to organize classrooms, attendance, and gradebooks.

Class Organizer Complete ($5; for students)

GradeBook Pro ($10)

InClass (F; for students)

TeacherKit (F)

Teacher’s Aide (F)

Demonstration Apps
This category includes specific psychology-related demonstration apps. These vary from those that can be used as “labs,” class A/V displays, digital jukeboxes (brain and body), and informational for both the professor and students. The list is by no means exhaustive.

General Psychology Information Apps

Psych Drugs (F)

PsychExplorer (F)

PsychGuide (F)

PsychTerms (F)

PsycTest Hero ($4)

Psychology Latest (F)

Lab Demos

Cardiograph ($2)

PAR CRR ($4)

Puffin (APA OPL) (F)

Stroop Effect (F)

TouchReflex (F)

Anatomy & Physiology

3D Brain (F)

Brain Tutor (F)

Cardiograph ($2)

EyesandEars ($1)

Grays Anatomy ($1)

iMuscle ($2)

Sensation & Perception

3D illusions (F)

Eye Illusions ($2)

EyeTricks ($1)

Audio/Visual Informational Resources

iTunes U (F)

Podcasts (F)

SoundBox ($1)

DIY Presentations

Educreations (F)

Explain Everything ($3)

Video Presentations

Apple Video (F)

NetFlix ($8 monthly subscription for streaming)

YouTube(F)

Social Media

FaceBook (F)

Twitter(F)

You can find a digital version of this document with LIVE internet links (where applicable) on my college webpage (http://faculty.ccp.edu/faculty/dsberg/) and click on “TUTORIALS & DEMOS.

David Berg is Professor of Psychology at Community College of Philadelphia where he was the recipient of the Lindback Foundation Award for excellence in college teaching, and where he served as past chair of the Behavioral Sciences Department. He received his Ph.D. from Temple University in experimental psychology and completed postdoctoral training in family systems theory from Drexel University/Hahnemann Medical College. David has pioneered workshops focusing on “wellness in the workplace” and has presented these to government, business, and educational institutions. He trains other psychologists to enable them to perform similar workshops. Dr. Berg has presented a number of workshops that focus on the use of writing in Psychology courses, both at NITOP and at APA. Further, he has presented a number of NITOP workshops on use of technology in the classroom. Since the advent of laptop computers, David has consulted with academic teaching faculty to bring them up to the cutting edge in using technology in the classroom. He also serves as a resource for those who teach in institutions on a “shoestring budget” like his own. He views and uses technology as a means to heighten the standards of critical thinking and writing in teaching rather than as a mere adjunct to lecturing.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Flipping the Classroom Improves Performance in Research Methods in Psychology Courses

(Past member) — Thu, 01 Jun 2017 12:19:01 GMT

Flipping the Classroom Improves Performance in
Research Methods in Psychology Courses

Ellen Furlong
Illinois Wesleyan University

Despite having taught it many times Research Methods in Psychology remains one of the most challenging courses I teach. The difficulty arises primarily because Methods has two major goals: (1) to teach students the required concepts (2) to be able to understand, evaluate, design, and conduct research. In short—we must teach both content (what is a hypothesis?) and skill (where is the hypothesis in this article? Is it strong? What is my hypothesis?), usually in just one semester.

The first few times I taught Methods I tackled this problem by covering content in class and relying on a semester-long APA-style research proposal for students to practice. On the surface this worked modestly—students typically wrote interesting papers with at least superficially solid ability to apply their knowledge.

One semester I challenged my students to something new: I assigned a very short 2 page article (Kille, Forest & Wood, 2013) and asked questions about it (i.e., True or False. One of Kille and colleagues (2013) hypotheses was a rating of the likelihood that marriages of four well-known couples would break up in the next 5 years). This activity was a disaster. Although students readily defined a hypothesis or a dependent variable, almost none could correctly identify or differentiate them in the article. This revealed both a shallowness of understanding of the psychological concepts and a lack of practice applying and working with them.

I found this troubling not only for my students who would go on to graduate school or take upper level seminars, but perhaps most troubling for my students who would likely not receive more training in methods and might graduate without the ability to consume research critically. Successful consumers of research need to not only describe the concepts involved in research, but apply them readily to newspapers, blog posts, or Buzzfeed articles that they read. This is especially important in today’s age of ‘disinformation’ and false news.

In short, the problem with Research Methods is that to practice the skills involved in research, students first need to understand the concepts. And given the pressures of the semester we often don’t have enough time for them to do both.

This is hardly a new problem; others with similar difficulty have often turned to flipped classrooms (see, for example Peterson, 2016 and Wilson, 2013 who have used flipped courses for similar reasons in a statistics course). A typical flipped classroom involves presenting traditional lecture-based material (i.e., the foundational concepts) in an online video that students watch on their own before coming to class. During class students then work together under the guidance of the instructor to practice applying these concepts and honing skills (e.g., Lage, Platt & Treglia, 2000). This allows students to do the “easy” parts of learning—listening to a professor lecture, memorizing material, etc. —at home, while doing the hard parts—actually thinking about and applying the material—in the classroom with the professor’s help.

Flipped classrooms have many advantages. First, students can learn the content at their own pace because they can watch the lectures as often as they need to in order to understand the content. Second, through classroom activities, students can assess their own knowledge early, so they know what they don’t know before the exam, and target their practice accordingly. Third, because students practice their research skills in the classroom I can provide one-on-one time with them. I can offer instant feedback, can see where they struggle, and can scaffold them to success. I can correct their mistakes while they are making them, and adjust activities in the moment to ensure they fully meet my course goals. When students practice their skills at home I may have no idea where or how they struggle.

In effect, flipping the classroom allows me to move from a “sage on the stage” to a “guide on the side”, emphasizing the skill involved in assessing and designing research rather than providing definitions and rote memorization of the jargon.

Implementing a flipped classroom is very time consuming and difficult—for every 10-20-minute video I made, I spent at least 3 hours writing a script (don’t think you can do this on the fly—you hem and haw and students feel like you’re wasting their time), creating slides, recording the video, editing it, and posting it to our course management system. Sometimes I found other people’s work that was far better than what I could have done (see Ben Goldacre’s Battling Bad Science TED Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h4MhbkWJzKk) and that saved me hours, but for the most part I made my own lectures. I wrote online quizzes and discussion forums to ensure that students watched the lectures, and on top of all that I had to create an entirely new set of in-class activities to help my students practice their skills—the entire point of this exercise (The Society for the Teaching of Psychology (http://topix.teachpsych.org/w/page/19980993/FrontPage), Teach Psych Science (http://www.teachpsychscience.org/), and others have excellent resources for help on their websites). Each of these took at least another 2-3 hours to prepare, many of them much longer. In short, between making your own videos, exploring other people’s work, writing quizzes, and developing new in class exercises this is a daunting exercise, not to be assumed lightly.

However, despite the immense amount of time and effort it took to flip my course the outcomes were phenomenal and I hope that will be encouraging enough to motivate others to pursue it and, equally importantly, to motivate your students to give a flipped class a chance.

A brief word about what I will show you here—in the Fall of 2013 I taught Methods in a traditional lecture-based course and in the Fall of 2014 I taught the same course flipped with 16 video lectures spread throughout the semester. I chose to compare two fall semesters although my first time flipping the course occurred in the Spring of 2014. I did not examine this data as students in fall and spring typically differ in systematic ways (i.e., more first-semester juniors in the fall and more second-semester sophomores in the spring).

I assessed three measures over the course of both semesters: (1) applied exam questions, (2) a large APA style research paper, and (3) student evaluations of instruction scores. I chose exam questions that focused on particularly difficult foundational questions and for which there were least two questions per topic. For the APA style research paper, I randomly selected 5 student papers per class for in-depth assessment. These were scored on a scale of 1 (absent) to 6 (exceeds expectations). There was a good correlation between these scorings (r = .87) and the grading rubric I had initially used to score the papers. Student evaluation of instruction scores ranged from 1 (strongly disagree) to 5 (strongly agree) and included a number of questions that I will discuss below. Finally, because the sample size was low I accepted alpha values of .10.

T-tests revealed that students in the flipped course (F) and the traditional course (T) scored fairly similarly on most applied exam questions (Design: F 88%, T: 90%, p = .82; Hypotheses: F 81%, T 76%, p = .69; Sampling/ Assignment: F: 85%, T: 80%, p = .38; Reliability/Validity: F: 83%, T: 78%, p = .39) but for two of the hardest concepts, variables and causation, students in the flipped course greatly outperformed students in the traditional course (Variables: F: 90%, T: 79%, p = .06; Causation: F: 92%, T: 73%, p = .015).

Though this was impressive, the largest improvement showed in the APA style research papers. Interestingly students in the flipped course used evidence better (F: 5.2; T: 3.4, p = .02), had better argument organization (F: 4.8, T: 3.2, p = .05), stronger hypotheses (F: 6, T: 4.2, p = .03), better proposed methods (F: 5.13, T: 4.13, p = .03), were able to discuss their predicted findings in more profound ways (F: 5.6, T: 4.35, p < .01), and had overall better papers than students in the traditional course (F: 5.45, T: 4.5, p = .06). Students in the flipped course were also marginally better at synthesizing information across sources (F: 5, T: 3.8, p = .11). However, it wasn’t just that students in the flipped course were better writers (Writing style: F: , 4.54, T: 4.47, ns) or better at following directions (APA Style: F: 5.13, T: 4, ns) so their improvements in these areas seems targeted and important.

Student evaluation of instruction scores also told an interesting tale—students in the flipped course were more likely to recommend the course (T: 4.13, F: 4.70, p = .10) even though they found it provided a greater intellectual challenge (T: 4.40, F: 4.90, p = .06) and they found the difficulty level less appropriate (i.e., they reported that the course was too hard: T: 4.67, F: 4.10, p = .01). So even though students found the course harder they were more likely to recommend the flipped class to others compared to those in the traditional course.

While we’re talking about student evaluation scores, I will point out that my evaluation scores suffered a little the first semester I flipped the course (Spring 2014). While they dropped in some areas (i.e., students found me less available for help; thought my comments were not as useful) their overall evaluation scores stayed fairly similar (4.58 vs 4.59). Further, this ‘hit’ to my evaluations disappeared after one semester. My interpretation here is that I was frantically writing lectures and prepping in-class activities and didn’t have as much time to spend with the students and on comments. Now that all that work is done I have more time than ever to spend on my students. Since then my evaluation scores have stayed the same or risen (average 2014/2015: 4.58, 2015-2016: 4.60, 2016-2017: 4.82). Open ended student evaluations indicate that they very much valued the flipped experience and used it just as I would hope. For example, one representative comment said:

Teaching this particular material in a “flipped course” was effective. The nature of the material is generally easy to understand with previous experience in psychology but it was not always as simple to apply it; therefore, practicing application in class was helpful. Overall this fostered the ability to apply the knowledge across useful areas both in this course and other courses.

In summary, flipping the course in Research Methods is hard, but it benefits the students. While this benefit may not necessarily show up on every exam it shows where it counts—when students use their knowledge of methods to evaluate articles or design their own research. They are better able to think about important scientific controls, to design better experiments, and to keep their interpretation within reach of their data set. In short, this improves their training as scientists and consumers of research which we hope will persist throughout their lives. Though this work is hard (for both you and the students), it pays off.

I’ll leave you here with a few quick words of advice about flipping your own course: First, you don’t need to flip your entire course all at once. Consider flipping one day this semester and see how it goes. Next semester, add another. Second, borrow from people who have done this already. Raid listservs and teaching websites. Email me and I will happily send you my materials (scripts, videos, quizzes, activities, etc.) or give you a pep talk. Talk to your colleagues and share with them. Third, tell your students they will be in a flipped course and, importantly, why. Give them the data I’ve given you—reassure them that their papers will be stronger, their grades will be better, and they will be happier. They will get on board. Fourth, and perhaps the scariest for junior faculty like myself, accept that the first semester you flip, your teaching evaluations may take a hit. Know that you’re gambling, yes, but it’s on a good bet—they will likely rise higher down the road once you’ve sold your students, once they know what they’re getting by enrolling in your course, and once you have mastered the flip.

References

Kille, D.R., Forest, M.L. & Wood, J.V. (2013). Tall, dark, and stable: Embodiment motivates mate selection. Psychological Science, 24, 112-114.

Lage, M.J., Platt, G.J., & Treglia, M. (2000). Inverting the classroom: A gateway to creating an inclusive learning environment. The Journal of Economic Education, 31, 30-43.

Peterson, D.J. (2016). The flipped classroom improves student achievement and course satisfaction in a statistics course: A quasi-experimental design. Teaching of Psychology, 43(1), 10-15.

Wilson, S.G., (2013). The flipped class: A method to address the challenges of an undergraduate statistics course. Teaching of Psychology, 40(3), 193-199.

Biographical Sketch

Ellen Furlong is an Assistant Professor in Psychology and Director of the Comparative Cognition Lab at Illinois Wesleyan University. She received her B.A. in Mathematics from Transylvania University and her Ph.D. in Psychology from The Ohio State University. Before joining the faculty at Illinois Wesleyan University in 2013, she served as a postdoctoral fellow at Yale University. Ellen has taught several courses with "flipped" components including a survey level fully online course, a writing intensive research methods course with flipped lectures, and a team-taught, cross-institution (Illinois Wesleyan and Transylvania Universities) May Term travel course with flipped lectures and skyped class sessions.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Teaching with Affordable Technology to Increase Student Learning

(Past member) — Tue, 16 May 2017 12:57:39 GMT

Teaching with Affordable Technology to Increase Student Learning

Judith Pena-Shaff (Ithaca College)

Amber Gilewski (Tompkins Cortland Community College)

Last year at the APA Convention in Orlando, we participated in a symposium about the use of Open Educational Resources (OER) to increase student learning. Judith had little familiarity with OER, while Amber had been using these resources in her classes for the past two years, on the recommendation of her Provost who was enthusiastic about them. A few days later, the president of Judith’s institution began his all-faculty meeting cautioning about the threat that OER known as Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) posed to traditional institutions of higher education. As a current participant in an Introduction to Psychology class offered through Coursera, questions about the educational and learning values of these resources came to Judith’s mind. Will OER increase students’ learning? And if so, how? In this essay, we discuss the value of open educational resources to increase student learning opportunities, as well as their challenges and promises.

Open Educational Resources (OER) are “teaching, learning, and research resources that reside in the public domain or have been released under an intellectual property license that permits their free use or re-purposing by others” (Atkins, Brown, & Hammond, 2007, p 4). Inspired by the Open Source Software (OSS) and the Open Access (OA) movements in the mid 90’s (Baraniuk, 2008; Wiley & Gurrell, 2009), OER are relatively new phenomena that aim to 1) provide free or at least affordable access to knowledge and digital educational and research resources; and 2) reduce the high cost of teaching materials. Philanthropically, it is hoped that OER will help to equalize worldwide access to knowledge, and provide everyone with the opportunity to share, re-use, and re-conceptualize knowledge (Atkins et al., 2007; Baraniuk, 2008). OER include, but are not limited to, learning resources such as full online courses, courseware (e.g., syllabi, lectures, quizzes, and homework assignments), learning objects, assessment tools, software (e.g. IHMC CmapTools program), learning management systems (e.g. Sakai), textbooks, encyclopedias (e.g. Wikipedia), simulations, and other resources or techniques used to support access to knowledge (Hylén, 2006; Downes,2007). Some well-known open education projects are Connexions, which started in 1999; Wikipedia, launched in 2001; a series of OER projects sponsored by the Hewlett Foundation ; MIT Open Courseware, which began in 2002; and more recently, platforms such as Coursera Udacity, and edX (a joint venture between Harvard and MIT), which offer MOOCs.

There are many reasons why psychology instructors might decide to adopt OER in their traditional face-to-face or distance learning classes. First, OER allow us to provide students with affordable access to information and knowledge. For example, Gilewski provided students with the option to use an OER textbook in her general psychology community college classes (Gilewski, 2012). They could either read the book online or print it for a small fee. She found, in contrast with previous semesters, that students spent less for their class materials, their grades improved, and there was a reduction in the number of course withdrawals. However, it is impossible to know if these results were caused by students’ access to affordable reading material.

Second, OER allows instructors the opportunity to customize their course materials, providing students with different types of learning aids that better fit the course objectives and benefit different types of learners. For example, Audley-Piotrowski and Magun-Jackson (2012) used a custom-designed DVD with different types of learning resources to increase student preparation and involvement in a Developmental Psychology course. Their study revealed that different types of learning aids engaged different types of students. Non-traditional students and students who defined themselves as independent learners benefited the most from the ancillary the course CD offered than more traditional and dependent learners.

In addition, OER can be used to combine different tools to help students develop shared knowledge through communities of practice. Draper (2012) explored how knowledge-building activities, such as individually and collaboratively creating concept maps, helped her students develop knowledge convergence. She used Moodle, a free course management system, an asynchronous online communication system for student collaboration, and IHMC CMap tools, a concept mapping software package that can be downloaded for free at http://cmap.ihmc.us/download/. Integrating these learning resources with instructional activities increased student engagement and participation and fostered the development of complex knowledge structures both in online and blended classroom environments.

So far, we have presented the inclusion of OER in somewhat traditional course environments. MOOCs, however, are a different species of OER. Although the first course using the name MOOC was offered in 2008, the term became a buzzword at the beginning of 2012, with the creation of Coursera, an online platform that offers entire college courses for free. This company, started by two Stanford professors, now has contracts with well-known universities that offer free courses, although not yet for credit, through its online platform. Judith’s experience taking an Introduction to Psychology class taught by University of Toronto professor Steve Joordens has been very positive so far, although not very challenging. The lectures are 15-minutes or less, and are geared to introduce a few basic psychology concepts and theories to a very diverse audience in terms of age, occupation, and geographical location. At the end of each lecture there are two multiple-choice items related to the lecture (not graded), links to free online videos (usually from YouTube), and additional readings. The online discussions are lively, and some participants have been promoted to the level of teaching assistants because of the feedback they often give to others. Other participants write lecture notes and share them with the class. Judith, as others, just watches the lectures. To obtain a certificate of completion a student must complete two multiple-choice exams with a grade of 70 or higher. These tests permit a review of the lecture and retest on the items, to allow the student to correct wrong responses (very like B. F. Skinner’s Programmed Instruction technique). In addition, a short, peer-reviewed argument paper can lead to a “certification of completion with distinction.”

From these examples we can see that OER offer instructors and students certain advantages. Students find them more affordable than commercial sources. Thus, if access to textbooks is an issue for our students, then OER become very appealing. OER also provide equal access to learning resources worldwide. For example, in the Coursera Introductory Psychology course, all participants have access to the videos and readings, no matter where they live or their levels of education. Many of the resources can be customized by instructors (e.g. editing the textbook, adding or simplifying information). They also give instructors the flexibility to combine different learning resources to better serve their students, to favor different pedagogical approaches (from memorization to knowledge construction), and to complement the textbook. They can be designed to follow a non-linear format. Instructors can link the course syllabus to the readings, videos, and Internet resources to help students gain a better understanding of the course content. All these factors sound very appealing.

For faculty interested in infusing more OER in their own courses, some resources may include, but are not limited to the Community College Consortium for Open Educational Resources (http://oerconsortium.org), Carnegie Mellon Open Learning Initiative (http://oli.cmu.edu), Saylor (www.saylor.org), and OpenStax College (http://openstaxcollege.org). Amber has been involved with the Kaleidoscope Project (http://www.project-kaleidoscope.org), a cross-institutional collaboration for using the best existing OER for the past few years. They are always looking for new adopters in this grant-funded work.

However, there are also challenges in adopting OER. For example, increased access does not necessarily mean enhanced or increased learning or motivation. Research shows that less than 30% of psychology students read their textbooks before class and less than 70% read them before an exam (Clump, Bauer, & Bradley, 2004). Of the 60,000 individuals who registered for the Coursera-based Introduction to Psychology class that Judith is observing, 12,000 (20%) were still actively participating at the time we wrote this essay (class announcement, June 4, 2013). This was before the first assessment took place. We wonder how many participants will actually complete all the course assignments and finish the course.

Also, research on students’ perceptions of textbooks’ pedagogical aids (Marek, Griggs, & Christopher, 1999) shows that students tend to prefer aids that directly relate to test preparation (such as chapter glossaries, boldface definitions, chapter summaries and self-tests) rather than aids that might lead to a deeper understanding of the course material. Therefore, it was not surprising that students in Audley-Piotrowski’s and Magun-Jackson’s (2012) case study focused only on the readings and concepts and not on the other resources, since the test focused mainly on the readings.

Issues also arise from our lack of familiarity with and concerns over the quality of OER resources. Of course, this is not much different than when we try to select textbooks in our area. The main difference is that we can always get some feedback from colleagues about textbooks. Since OER are not so well known, we are less likely to get feedback so we have to figure things out on our own. Also, we must find the OER while the textbooks usually come to our offices via publishers’ representatives.

A major challenge relates to the sustainability of OER in terms of funding (so far most OER funding has come from educational institutions’ or foundations’ grants), technical upkeep (e.g., What happens when a problem occurs? Who maintains the sites?), and content (updating the content, reliability of sources, and so on). Several models have been proposed, particularly for the sustainability of MOOCs, such as charging participants for certificates of completion, charging employers who might be given access to participants’ grades, and of course, sponsors.

While we have different, affordable learning technologies available today, some of the problems we face as instructors are still the same. For example, Hammer (2012) discussed students’ lack of metacognitive skills and learning strategies. Basically, many of our students do not know how to study or which learning strategies work best for them. We need to teach students these strategies directly, and help them become more conscious and purposeful in their learning. One way to do this could be by creating assignments that make them reflect on how they learn, regardless of the type of learning resources or environment where learning takes place.

Students also need to be active in learning. To encourage more active learning in her Introduction to Psychology classes, Amber has been involved with the Carnegie Mellon Open Learning Initiative, which provides a more interactive approach to learning the material. Students read material online, watch embedded videos, engage in “Learn-By-Doing” and “Did-I-Get-This?” activities that provide immediate, targeted feedback, before they go on to take graded Checkpoints after each module. She has seen a dramatic increase in her students’ success and interaction with course material, which she’ll present at a symposium at the APA’s 2013 Convention in Hawaii.

In conclusion, OER provides affordable access to learning resources. Integrating OER and active learning strategies might help to foster complex knowledge structures. Our role is to guide our students so they use and take advantage of these resources.

References

Atkins, D.E., Brown, J.S., & Hammond, A.L. (2007). A review of the Open Educational Resources (OER) movement: Achievements, challenges, and opportunities (Report to the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation). Retrieved June 2013 from: http://www.hewlett.org/uploads/files/ReviewoftheOERMovement.pdf.

Audley-Piotrowski, S.R. & S. Magun-Jackson, S. (2012, August) Textbook alternatives and student learning in a lifespan development course. In A.M. Gilewski and D.C. Draper (chairs), Teaching with affordable technology to increase student learning: What works. Symposium presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Orlando, FL.

Baraniuk, R. G. (2008). Challenges and opportunities for the open education movement: A Connexions case study. In T. Iiyoshi & M. V. Kumar (Eds.), The Collective Advancement of Education through Open Technology, Open Content, and Open Knowledge (pp. 229-246). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Clump, M.A., Bauer, H. & Bradley, C. (2004). The extent to which psychology students read textbooks: A multiple class analysis of reading across the psychology curriculum, Journal of Instrumental Psychology, 31, 227-233.

Downes, S. (2007). Models for sustainable open educational resources. Interdisciplinary Journal of Knowledge and Learning Objects, 3, 29-44. Retrieved June, 2013 from: http://www.ijklo.org/

Draper, D.C. (2012, August), Instructional strategies to promote knowledge convergence in online communities of practice. In A.M. Gilewski and D.C. Draper (chairs), Teaching with affordable technology to increase student learning: What works. Symposium presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Orlando, FL.

Gilewski, A.M., (2012, August). Using open educational resources to improve student success in introduction to psychology courses. In A.M. Gilewski and D.C. Draper (chairs), Teaching with affordable technology to increase student learning: What works. Symposium presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Orlando, FL.

Hammer, E.Y (2012, August). Meta-studying: Teaching metacognitive strategies to enhance student success. Paper presented at the annual convention of the American Psychological Association, Orlando, FL.

Hylén, J. (2006, September). Open educational resources: Opportunities and challenges. Proceedings of Open Education 2006: Community, culture and context. Utah State University (pp. 49-63). Retrieved June 10, 2013 from: http://library.oum.edu.my/oumlib/sites/default/files/file_attachments/odl-resources/386010/oer-opportunities.pdf.

Marek, P., Griggs, R. A., & Christopher, A. N. (1999). Pedagogical aids in textbooks: Do college students' perceptions justify their prevalence? Teaching of Psychology, 26(1), 11-19.

Wiley, D., & Gurrell, S. (2009). A decade of development. Open Learning, 24(1), 11-21. doi:10.1080/02680510802627746.

*****************************************

Judith Pena-Shaff is an associate professor and chair of the psychology department at Ithaca College. She earned her Ph.D. in educational psychology from Cornell University in 2001. Dr. Pena-Shaff’s research interest is in instructional technology. Specifically, she is interested in the knowledge construction processes students use in computer-mediated learning environments with the purpose of creating a taxonomy to help instructors assess student learning. In addition, Dr. Pena-Shaff is highly engaged in her community, often conducting evaluations of educational programs run by schools and local organizations.

Amber Gilewski is an assistant professor of psychology at Tompkins Cortland Community College in upstate NY. She is a Psychology Fellow on the Kaleidoscope Project, which is a Next Generation Learning Challenges grant-funded collaboration of colleges in the U.S. devoted to improving student success and retention in general education courses, through the use of OER. She earned her master’s degree in Clinical-Counseling Psychology from LaSalle University in 2002 and has been teaching at community colleges since 2004.

A Short Writing Assignment for Introductory Courses and Beyond

(Past member) — Tue, 02 May 2017 23:44:22 GMT

A Short Writing Assignment for Introductory Courses and Beyond
Mitchell M. Handelsman
University of Colorado Denver

I don’t want to be a downer or anything, but I have a lot of problems in my teaching. Among them:

Getting students to do the readings
Getting students to think
Getting students to think about the readings they do
Wanting to have students write in meaningful ways
Having too much work to do
Getting bored reading papers that all say the same thing
Having student read without being accountable until the test, which may be weeks away (Handelsman, 2016)

In this essay I describe an assignment that solves, or at least addresses, these problems. I have students write very short papers about their reading assignments in which they do more than summarize or question. To get a sense of the assignment, imagine that you are an introductory psychology student, and you read this in the syllabus:

Processing and Reflecting on Psychology (PROPS)

Actors need props, right? If you want to act like a student, you need PROPS!

PROPS are short reflections on—and explorations of—your reading. They can be as short as a few sentences and no longer than 1 page. You will process (do something with, reflect on) at least 2 major concepts or key terms from the material you read. Here’s what I mean by processing:

- You can ask and answer a question about what you’ve read.
- You can differentiate key terms from each other, or show how you might remember them.
- You can generate a couple of new examples of a couple of key terms.
- You can relate the concepts to material from other modules, courses, or experiences.
- In general, you can do anything beyond just questioning (e.g., “What does the hindsight bias mean?”) or reporting (e.g., “The psychoanalytic approach deals with unconscious material.”).
I assign PROPS to encourage you to:
- do the reading (Course Goals 1 and 2) and do it actively (Course Goal 3).
- practice active learning skills (Course Goal 3), such as self-reflection, applying, and elaborating.
- come to class, and come prepared to work (Good for ALL course goals!).
Logistics
- You will write 15 PROPS this semester. At the top of each, put your name, the date, the module covered, and the number of the PROP (e.g., the first prop you submit will be “PROP 1”).
- PROPS need to be typed, double-spaced, 12-point font, 1-inch margins, no longer than 1 page.
- You can hand in a PROP any day for which there is a reading assignment. The 2 (or more) concepts you process must be from the reading assigned for that day.
- You can only hand in 1 PROP per class.
- You have some choice about when you hand in PROPS, but I encourage you to start soon!! If you wait until the beginning of March, for example, you will have to hand in a PROP every class period.
Grading
- You can earn 2 points for each of your PROPS. You will earn 2 points for showing that you’ve done the reading and are doing something more than reporting or questioning 2 concepts. You will earn 1 point if you hand in the PROP on time but have not processed or reflected actively upon 2 concepts.
- I don’t grade PROPS on accuracy, but on activity! You are rewarded for taking risks and trying to learn.
Hints
- The best PROPS are those that help you answer test questions by going beyond simple, sweeping statements or stories about your life. Take risks to see if you understand.
- Use the language of psychology. Show that you’ve done the reading (Course Goals 1, 2, and 4).
- If you discuss personal experiences, do more than tell a story: show explicitly how the concepts apply your experience. For example: To say that you use coping strategies and tell a story about one of them is not enough. To show why some of your strategies are problem-focused and some emotion-focused is better. To relate your coping to some other information in the book, like speculating on some biological, social, or psychological factors in your coping, is wonderful!
- PROPS can demonstrate that you appreciate the complexity of human behavior (Course Goal 2) by avoiding simplistic and extreme statements. For example, instead of, “I find it interesting that most fields of practice use the scientific method.This means that psychology is no different than any of the other fields of study in the world,” this might be better: “Many fields of study use the scientific method.Thus, psychology shares one characteristic with fields like biology and physics.In other ways, of course, psychology is different from other fields.”

By the way, here are the course goals that the assignment refers to:

I teach this course so you can:

Learn major concepts and findings in psychology.

Appreciate the complexity of human behavior.

Develop and practice more active ways of studying and learning, including writing to learn, active reading, reflection, participating in class (individually and in groups), and more effective test-taking skills.

Appreciate how psychologists think; e.g., how they use scientific methods to study behavior.

Develop the ability to meet deadlines and follow directions.

Students can earn a total of 400 points in the course; thus, these papers represent 7.5% of the final grade. Of course, the relative weight of the assignment is up to you depending on your goals. In my course, students earn 300 points for test performance and the rest for two larger papers in which they process at least three concepts across at least two chapters. One of these papers can be revised, and one can be an expansion of a PROP.

I used to have students submit hard copies of their PROPS at the beginning of class, to encourage attendance. Recently I’ve been having students submit these types of papers on our LMS a few hours before class so I have the chance to read at least some of them before class (Handelsman, 2014). This gives me a chance to address misunderstandings and tailor exercises to incorporate students’ efforts.

You can adapt this assignment for other courses and purposes (Handelsman, 2014). For example, you can specify additional elements for one or more of the PROPs, such as having students apply concepts from the text to an outside reading, an upcoming presentation, or previous PROPS. You can increase the number of concepts as the semester goes on. In upper-division courses you might specify the type of higher-order thinking you want students to do.

Although the final product is short, I find it helpful to let students know that they may need to write much more than one page and then edit it to show me their best work. Here is the way I often explain it:

“A one-page paper is like a traditional five-page paper with the extra verbiage removed. In high school (or other college courses), you sometimes spend the first four of the five pages summarizing what you’ve read. Then, you have a page to go and you don’t have anything else to summarize, so you say to yourself, ‘Let me just mess around and throw in something from the previous unit that seems to relate.’ It’s on that last page that you actually do something with what you’ve read. That’s what I want! I don’t need the summary. So you may have to write all those pages, but cut out the first ones and polish up the part where you’re thinking!”

Of course, there are still problems with this assignment (What kind of academic would I be if I didn’t see problems?):

There is not enough opportunity for students to revise their work, and I do not spend enough time on grammar, style, and other aspects of writing. In my defense, I want freshmen to have ideas. Once they have something of their own to say, they may be more motivated to learn how to share their thoughts in effective ways.
I still have a lot of reading to do. However, PROP reading is more interesting than reading a bunch of summaries, and the short length makes grading easier. And, of course, the assignment fits my short attention span.
Students can still read the first paragraph, or any paragraph, of a chapter and write something that would work. But I figure that even a little effort is better than nothing! They still have more of an opportunity to think and read differently (Hanelsman, 2016).

I hope you see some of the advantages of this assignment and ways to adapt it to your own course objectives. And forgive me for taking more than a page to explain it.

References

Handelsman, M. M. (2014, August 19). This year I’m having my freshmen do POT: Four reasons to have students rolling in papers [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-ethical-professor/201408/year-im-having-my-freshmen-do-pot-0

Handelsman, M. M. (2016, September 28). Reading with purpose, or purposes [Blog post]. Retrieved from http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/the-ethical-professor/201609/reading-purpose-or-purposes

BIO:

Mitchell M. Handelsman, Ph.D., is Professor of Psychology and CU President's Teaching Scholar at the University of Colorado Denver, where he has been on the faculty since 1982. Dr. Handelsman has won numerous teaching awards, including the 1992 CASE (Council for the Advancement and Support of Education) Colorado Professor of the Year Award, and APA’s Division 2 Excellence in Teaching Award in 1995. He has co-authored three books, Ethics for Psychotherapists and Counselors: A Proactive Approach (2010; with Sharon Anderson), Ethical Dilemmas in Psychotherapy: Positive Approaches to Decision Making (2015; with Samuel Knapp and Michael Gottlieb), and The Life of Charlie Burrell: Breaking the Color Barrier in Classical Music (2015, with Charlie Burrell). He is an associate editor of the APA Handbook of Ethics in Psychology (2012).

OMG RU Really Going to Send That? Email Communication with Students

(Past member) — Sun, 16 Apr 2017 13:18:05 GMT

OMG RU Really Going to Send That?
Email Communication with Students

Andrew Peck, PhD

The Pennsylvania State University

Electronic communication plays an important role in traditional collegiate education and online learning. In 2001, the number of email messages outnumbered letters sent by the United States Postal Service (Levinson, 2010). In 2002, Bloch reported that the typed word began to establish itself as the primary means of interpersonal communication, mentioning a case in which a student broke-up with her boyfriend via email. In fact, email has become the most widely used instructional technology (see Wilson & Florell, 2012). Recognizing this, at least one college tells students that email is the “lifeline of [their] communication with the college.” (http://www.gwinnetttech.edu/webmail/, sec. 1). Interestingly, while we are most likely to initiate electronic correspondence to send course announcements or meeting requests, students tend to use their “lifeline” to make appointments, ask questions, and offer excuses (Duran, Kelly, & Keaten, 2005)

Benefits

Email can benefit faculty members and students in a variety of ways. Email is a relatively inexpensive way to communicate with many people quickly, it fosters collaboration, file sharing (Hassini, 2004) and group problem solving (Hassini, 2004; Wilson & Florell, 2012), and it provides an electronic record or “paper trail” for later reference (Wilson & Florell, 2012). Email can also increase the accessibility of the instructor (Hassini, 2004; Wilson & Florell, 2012). We can use email to provide feedback, which can foster academic development (Duran, Kelly, & Keaten, 2005), motivation (Duran, Kelly, & Keaten, 2005; Kim & Keller, 2008), and achievement (Kim & Keller, 2008). Some have noted that email can increase student writing (Hassini, 2004), although others have expressed concerns about the quality of students’ electronic correspondences (see Bloch, 2002). Email can increase communication with students who struggle with face-to-face communication, including foreign, shy, or disabled students (see Bloch, 2002; Duran, Kelly, & Keaten, 2005). Finally, email use can improve students’ perceptions of us, especially when our responses are helpful and prompt (Sheer & Fung, 2007), and include appropriate emotional content (Wilson & Florell, 2012).

Concerns

Like other instructional technologies, email is a tool, and misuse can result in unexpected consequences. Although the option to send a message to a large group of people quickly can be helpful, email does not come with “you probably shouldn’t send that” warnings, and sometimes people will send ill-conceived electronic messages to many recipients, as these examples of public Tweets (posts on Twitter) demonstrate:

“I can't believe my Grandmothers making me take out the garbage I'm rich f*** this I'm going home I don't need this s***” - 50 cent (Note: I’ve added spaces and censored the message to make it more readable and appropriate for readers)

“With so many Africans in Greece, at least the mosquitoes of West Nile will eat homemade food.” - Voula Papachristou, Greek triple jumper who was removed from the Greek Olympic team for posting this sarcastic comment

Although many of us are fortunate enough to have students who don’t send inappropriate mass mailings to classmates regularly, email does provide an avenue for upset students to vent before they’ve fully considered the consequences. Furthermore, while email increases the accessibility of the instructor, it also means that students have increased expectations about our availability and personal attention. Consequently, responding to email seems to have changed the nature of our work.

Some of us prefer to use email as little as possible because the loss of non-verbal, social, and contextual cues can increase misunderstandings (Hassani, 2004), but many of us seem to treat it as a job requirement (and sometimes it is). Nonetheless, it can be time consuming to respond appropriately to student messages (Hassani, 2004), and sometimes responding becomes “the third shift in an already overcrowded day” (Mason, 2010, para. 3). Sometimes, when it is clear that students did not take the time to read important announcements sent via email, we wonder if sending email is worth the time it takes us to compose the message.

To make matters worse, sometimes we wonder if the email students send are actually written by the student who is listed as the sender. In our department, my colleagues and I have received messages from student accounts that were actually written by those students’ friends, roommates, and parents. Ironically, some of us might wish students’ parents wrote messages for their children more often, as student messages can be too casual for many educators (see Bloch, 2002). It is not uncommon for electronic messages to lack grammar and punctuation, as this example demonstrates:

“can i come 2 ur office i need 2 meet w u b4 the test i have ?s thx”

Faculty Member Expectations

Faculty members vary in their expectations of student email (Biesenbach-Lucas, 2007). To help students understand specific expectations, some of us include a statement about email communication in their syllabus. Here is an excerpt from a sample syllabus that focuses on instructor accessibility and other concerns:

Email policy: On weekdays, I check my mail once -- in the early morning. If you send me an e-mail after 6 a.m., do NOT expect an answer until the next day. I do NOT check my mail at all on weekends. So if you send me a message anytime after 6 a.m. on Friday, you will not get an answer until Monday morning. I do not open emails with attachments. I do not open emails without subject lines. I do not open emails written in languages I can’t read – so be sure if you have your email set to a non-English format that your name and information come through in English. (http://public.wsu.edu/~mejia/Handbook/Sample_105_Syllabus.htm, para. 2)

Here is an excerpt from another syllabus that focuses on tone and style:

…all email communication will follow the guidelines enumerated here. Email should be composed in formal, professional language, and with attention to the propriety accorded to the position of the writer, and the addressee…(http://www.hist.umn.edu/hist3722/syllabus.html, para. 9)

Some might worry that including these types of statements in their syllabus might cause students to view them as overly strict, but students may not be aware of how they come across in their email and appreciate knowing teacher expectations (Martin, 2011).

While a syllabus statement can help, challenging email messages seem to come with the job. While there are no recipes or guidelines we can use to construct the perfect email message, people have offered a number of helpful considerations. To help sort out these considerations, I have organized them below using based the popular green, yellow, red color coding scheme to reflect the potential gravity of the student’s message or the educator’s response.

Code Green Messages

Fortunately, we sometimes get “Code Green” messages. These messages are complimentary or positive in tone and content (I wanted to thank you for…, I enjoyed your course, are you teaching others…), ask for appropriate information respectfully, or include appropriate requests. Generally, these messages are easy to respond to professionally, so there is little need to offer strategies for responding to these types of messages.

Code Yellow Messages

Unfortunately, “Code Green” messages are often outnumbered by “Code Yellow” messages. These messages require us to proceed cautiously, as the message might require a considered response. Experience suggests that there are several types of “Code Yellow” messages: those that demonstrate that students misunderstand their own responsibilities, messages containing inappropriate personal information, and messages motivated by students’ anxieties (see Wilson and Florell, 2012, for an excellent review).

Sometimes students misunderstand their own responsibilities, and deflect or request accommodations to compensate (Wilson and Florell, 2012). For example, my colleagues and I get messages from students like these:

Dr. __ , I didn’t do well on your final exam. I am on the __ team and need an A in your class to get into my major and retain my scholarship. Please help.

Dr. __ , I didn't realize the ___ was due yesterday. What can I do to make-up those points?

Dr. __, I won’t be prepared for class discussion and can't do the first reading quiz because I just ordered the book. I apologize for any inconvenience.

Dr. __ , I didn't make it to class today. Can you please send me the notes I missed?

Sometimes students will include personal details of their lives inappropriately to justify a request. Sometimes lonely students just write to be friendly, and sometimes students seeking relationship advice confuse us with writers for the Dear Abby column. Consistent with examples provided by Wilson and Florell (2012), here are some example messages my colleagues and I received:

Dr. __, How are you? I would like to make an appt. to meet with you. I don’t have anything specific to discuss, I just thought I would stop in to say hi and chat. I have two dogs named….

Dr. __ , Help!…me and my friend hooked up once in the beginning of the semester and I liked her but didn't think she liked me back so I moved on, and……but now...what should I do?

Sometimes “Code Yellow” messages are sent by conscientious and responsible students whose anxieties get the best of them. Consistent with examples provided by Wilson and Florell (2012), here are some example messages we received:

Dr. ___ , I am in your 11:00 am class. I completed the extra credit writing assignment in class today, but I didn't receive credit in the online grade book yet. Please get back to me right away. I really need this credit. [message sent at 1:30 pm]

Dr. ___ , I wonder if the study guide you gave us is really everything we need to know for the final. We didn’t cover Chapter 11 in class, and it isn’t on the syllabus, but should I study it anyway? I emailed you earlier today, but I didn’t hear back yet.

Sometimes, students send “Code Yellow” messages requesting information that is outside of the responder’s expertise. In these cases, it is appropriate to redirect the student to the appropriate resource, often an academic advisor or health services professional. However, many “Code Yellow” messages are class specific, requiring us to respond directly. In these cases, we should try to treat these moments as “teachable moments.” We should model professionalism, maintain a professional tone and offer appropriate content (Wilson & Florell, 2012). Sometimes leading by example can help, and one never knows who will read the message, especially when technologies make it easy to share electronic correspondence with others easily.

As mentioned above, students appreciate it when we include emotional content in their responses (Sheer & Fung, 2007), but it is important to balance a congenial tone with a professional tone. One way to do that is to express empathy/sympathy when saying “no” (Wilson & Florell, 2012).

Example: Thanks for letting me know. I appreciate your dilemma. I hope that you can stay on the team and keep your scholarship. I’d really like to accommodate your request, but I have to assign your grade on the basis of merit and abide by the grading policies in our course syllabus or I will…. violate departmental and college policies….create an unfair situation for other students….

Wilson & Florell (2012) have also recommended that we provide students with perspective and encourage responsible action.

Example: Unfortunately, you can’t make it up, but it is only worth…you can still do well in the course if you…..

Example: Yes, you can do that. Please see the syllabus for details.

They also recommend ending our messages with a positive and sincere tone when possible, but also recognize that a persistent student will struggle to take “no” for an answer. In these cases, it is up to us to end the conversation directly, but not aggressively, ignoring additional email from the student about the same issue.

Example: Thanks for following-up and providing more information. I hope you have a good weekend.

Example: I appreciate your continued concerns, but as I said, there isn’t anything else I can do without violating college/course policies. I consider this matter closed.

Code Red Messages

While “Code Yellow” messages require us to slow down and respond cautiously, “Code Red” messages often require us to stop what we’re doing to construct a planned response. “Code Red” messages are highly emotional, highly critical, or have an aggressive tone. Examples include pleas for help, student disclosures of abuse or suicidal inclinations, or hostile messages from irate students. While discussing strategies for responding to aggressive behavior, Tunnecliffe (2007) listed a number of potential causes for students’ anger. He noted that some aggression stems from the lack of critical knowledge or inaccurate information, unrealistic expectations, or previous rewards for aggressive behaviors. Research on the development of the teenage brain also suggests that teenagers are more likely to become highly emotional than we are, and that emotion may cloud students’ reasoning abilities (for an example, see Spinks, 2013). Regardless of the factors involved, many aggressive messages seem to be triggered by perceptions of unfairness or inequity.

Because of the nature of “Code Red” messages, there are a number of things to consider when responding. On many campuses, when faculty members are alerted to imminent threats of harm (including student self-harm) they are required to alert their chairs/department heads and campus or local police. Many campuses have counseling or intervention teams, other student resources, or partnerships with community programs to offer student resources. When appropriate, we should introduce these resources to victimized students and should consider facilitating student contact/appointment scheduling. If nothing else, we can encourage victimized students to go to the local hospital, where hospital personnel and case-workers can get involved.

On some campuses, faculty members are instructed NOT to take on the role of detective/police officer or ask the student specific questions about a traumatic experience. This can increase feelings of victimization and make it less likely that the student will share critical details with law enforcement officials, student conduct authorities, police, or health professionals. Instead, we are advised to take the information the student has provided at face value, ask a few general questions (What happened? When? Where?) so that information can be passed on to authorities, reassure the student that they will do what they can to help, and then follow campus guidelines for helping.

Dealing with aggressive students can be challenging and emotional for us. My colleagues and I have found it helpful to walk away from the computer and let some time pass before they respond (usually 12-24 hrs). This gives us time to cool down so that we can respond more professionally, and it gives the student time to cool down, too. Occasionally, students will realize their message contained inappropriate content or had an inappropriate tone, and they will send a follow-up apology. While there isn’t any research on successful strategies for responding to aggressive email, recommendations can be drawn from discussions about the best ways to communicate with angry students to promote de-escalation. It is important to avoid using a reprimanding tone (Tunnecliffe, 2007), which can promote defensiveness and increase perceptions of victimization. It is also important to recognize that anxiety can increase threat perceptions (Craske, Rauch, Ursano, Prenoveau, Pine, Zinbarg, 2009), and that anxious students are more likely to interpret ambiguous information or references to authority as more threatening than intended. A calm, jargon-free, tone might be more successful (Tunnecliffe, 2007; University of Oregon Counseling and Testing Center, 2012). With this in mind, it is important to note that we should avoid using capitalized words or bold text for emphasis, as some student interpret these formatting cues to mean yelling rather than emphasis (Hassini, 2004). The University of Oregon Counseling and Testing Center recommends acknowledging the student’s emotion, and Larson (2008) recommends using content cues that facilitate an empathetic or sympathetic tone (e.g., I can see this is really important to you). We should use the present tense, focusing on the present situation rather than rehashing the past (Tunnecliffe, 2007) and explain what we can do (Larson, 2008) rather than explaining why we can’t address the student’s concerns, even if that is nothing more than an offer to meet and discuss.

Some of us might want to respond to criticisms from students directly. We all make mistakes, and sometimes students’ criticisms are based on something legitimate. In these cases, it might be best to agree with what is accurate and share your plan for corrective action (Tunnecliffe, 2007). If criticism is vague, it is fine to ask for clarification (Larson, 2008). Sometimes the initial criticism, or the response to your request for clarification, can be lengthy. In these cases, it might be best to address concerns globally rather than respond to individual concerns (Tunnecliffe, 2007). If none of these strategies sound appealing, we can always deflect the criticisms by simply thanking students for sharing their views (Tunnecliffe, 2007).

Final Thoughts: Maintain Perspective

Regardless of how you choose to respond to critical email messages, it is important to consider Alexander Pope’s “to err is human; to forgive divine” and to cut ourselves some slack (Tunnecliffe, 2007). It is also important to recognize that, while we can make the most out of “teachable moments,” we can’t get through to everyone (Larson, 2008). Research has shown that readers who are angered by email attribute the tone to the writer’s personality (Levinson, 2010). Student politeness affects our feelings towards the student, our beliefs about the student’s competence, and our motivations to help (Stephens, Houser, & Cowan, 2009; Bolkan & Holmgren, 2012). So, it is critically important to remember and apply the lessons we teach our students about the Fundamental Attribution Error and consider that situational, rather than dispositional, factors can lead the student to send inappropriate email.

Steve Johnson, a football player for the Buffalo Bills, blamed God for a dropped pass and posted the following to Twitter:

“I PRAISE YOU 24/7!!!!!! AND THIS HOW YOU DO ME!!!!! YOU EXPECT ME TO LEARN FROM THIS??? HOW???!!! ILL NEVER FORGET THIS!! EVER!!! THX “

So, the next time you read an annoying email message from a student, take a moment to appreciate that you are in good company.

References

Biesenbach-Lucas, S. (2007). Students writing emails to faculty: An examination of e-politeness among native and non-native speakers of English. Language Learning & Technology, 11(2), 59-81.

Bloch, J. (2002). Student/teacher interaction via email: The social context of internet discourse. Journal of Second Language Writing, 11, 117-134.

Bolkan, S., & Holmgren, J.L. (2012). ‘‘You are such a great teacher and I hate to bother you but...’’: Instructors’ perceptions of students and their use of email messages with varying politeness strategies. Communication Education, 61(3), 253-270.

Craske, M.G., Rauch, S.L., Ursano, R., Prenoveau, J., Pine, D.S., Zinbarg, R.E., (2009). What is an anxiety disorder? Depression and Anxiety, 26, 1066–1085.

Duran, R.L., Kelly, L., & Keaten, J.A. (2005). College faculty use and perceptions of electronic mail to communicate with students. Communication Quarterly, 53(2), 159-176

Gwinnet Technical College. (n.d.) Student webmail. Retrieved from http://www.gwinnetttech.edu/webmail/

Hassini, E. (2004). Student–instructor communication: The role of email. Computers & Education, 47, 29–40.

Kim, C. & Keller, J.M. (2008). Effects of motivational and volitional email messages (mvem) with personal messages on undergraduate students’ motivation, study habits and achievement. British Journal of Educational Technology, 39(1), 36–51. doi:10.1111

Larson, J. (2008). Angry and aggressive students. Principal Leadership, January, 12-15. Retrieved from http://www.nasponline.org/resources/principals/Angry%20and%20Aggressive%20Students-NASSP%20Jan%2008.pdf

Levinson, D.B. (2010). Passive and indirect forms of aggression & email: the ability to reliably perceive passive forms of aggression over email. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Wright Institute Graduate School of Psychology, Berkeley, CA.

RC Martin. (2011, June 21). Avoiding the angry email [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://blog.uwgb.edu/alltherage/avoiding-the-angry-email/

RC Martin. (2012, March 2). Responding to the angry email: A follow-up [Web log post]. Retrieved from http://blog.uwgb.edu/alltherage/responding-to-the-angry-email-a-follow-up/

Mason, M.A., (2010, July). Email: The third shift. The Chronicle of Higher Education. Retrieved from http://chronicle.com/article/E-Mail-the-Third-Shift/66312/

Mejia, E. (n.d.). Sample English 105 syllabus. Retrieved from http://public.wsu.edu/~mejia/Handbook/Sample_105_Syllabus.htm

Richtmyer, E. (2007). History 3722 syllabus. Retrieved from http://www.hist.umn.edu/hist3722/syllabus.html

Sheer, V.C., & Fung, T.K. (2007). Can email communication enhance professor-student relationship and student evaluation of professor?: Some empirical evidence. Journal of Educational Computing Research, 37(3), 289-306.

Spinks, S. (2013). One reason teens respond differently to the word: Immature brain circuitry. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/teenbrain/work/onereason.html

Stephens, K.K, Houser, M.L., & Cowan, R.L. (2009). R U able to meat me: The impact of students’ overly casual email messages to instructors. Communication Education, 58(3), 303-326.

Tunnecliffe, M. (2007). Behavioural de-escalation. Retrieved from http://www.education.nt.gov.au/__data /assets/pdf_file/0014/2318/Module7TeacherNotes.pdf

University of Oregon Counseling and Testing Center. (2012). Strategies for Dealing with Angry Students Outside the Classroom. Retrieved from http://counseling.uoregon.edu/dnn/FacultyStaff/DisruptiveThreateningStudents/DealingwithAngryStudentsOutsidetheClassroom/tabid/325/Default.aspx

Wilson, S., & Florell, D. (2012). What can we do about student e-mails? Observer, 25(5), 47-50.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Using media in the classroom: A cautionary tale and some encouraging findings

(Past member) — Tue, 04 Apr 2017 01:00:47 GMT

Submitted by William S. Altman and Lyra Stein, Editors, E-xcellence in Teaching Essays ___________________________________________________________________________

Using media in the classroom: A cautionary tale and some encouraging findings

Lynne N. Kennette
Durham College

Instructors should use caution when implementing new methods of teaching or assessments: just because students like it, doesn’t mean their learning necessarily benefits. This was recently revealed to me in one of my classes when I tried a new activity. However, as I discovered through student comments, there is a silver lining (read on!)

Background

One of the key skills that instructors in psychology try to develop in their students is the identification of independent variables (IV) and dependent variables (DV), which form the basis of research design and analysis. The very foundation of the scientific method includes identifying changes in one variable and how it relates to another variable. I wondered whether students would show a performance advantage (or any preference for) using media clips over written scenarios used for identifying IVs and DVs in experiments. So, I presented students with video clips from episodes of the television series MythBusters (Discovery Channel), audio clips from the National Public Radio’s Radiolab series, and my traditional written experiment scenarios.

Burkley and Burkley (2009) reported the benefits of using MythBusters clips to illustrate experimental designs. Students enjoyed the use of these clips in class, and performed better on MythBusters-related exam questions (compared to control questions). I suspected that students would prefer the video and audio scenarios for their entertainment value, but wondered whether their performance would actually benefit. Previous research suggested that students might both prefer and benefit from multimedia formats because it would stimulate interest and thus retention (Nowaczyk, Santos, & Patton, 1998). Media may also be more engaging than a written description, and engaging content leads to better learning of information (Tobias, 1994), and as we know, students put more effort into tasks they find interesting (Renninger, 1992).

However, it is also possible that the additional information provided by audio and video clips could distract students from the relevant information required to complete the task of identifying IVs and DVs (Walker & Bourne, 1961). This distracting information may come from the irrelevant “story-telling” details required to make these media commercially appealing (especially in the case of MythBusters). Additionally, because the learner cannot as easily control the stream of information (i.e., the speed at which information is delivered), students may experience a cost when presented with media compared to the traditional written format.

Method

In two sections of my advanced cognitive psychology laboratory course (and following a brief review lecture on the topic of IVs and DVs), students were presented with traditional written scenarios, video clips, and audio clips and had to identify IVs and DVs. Students were assessed multiple times: immediately following the IV/DV review lecture (Time 1), during the second to last week of class (Time 2), and on the very last day of class (Time 3; here, I presented previously-encountered scenarios to measure retention, however this timepoint resulted in ceiling effects and was, therefore, difficult to analyze). At the end of the class, I also asked students (anonymously) some qualitative questions to obtain their perceptions of the three question types (e.g., which of the three were perceived easier).

Results and Discussion

After adjusting for final course grade, it is reassuring to have found that students improved over the course of the semester (F(2, 252) = 50.87, p < .001, h_p² = .288). Student performance on the three formats also differed (F(2, 252) = 4.01, p = .019, h_p² = .031), whereby students answered the traditional written scenarios more accurately than Radiolab questions (M_written = 78%, M_Radiolab =68%, p = .005), but performance on the written scenarios did not differ from MythBusters questions (p = .128). What is perhaps even more interesting is that students perceived all three to be of similar difficulty, but indicated a preference for the MythBusters clips over the Radiolab audio clips. In addition, many students provided unsolicited feedback about how much “fun” the video and audio clips were and that these allowed them to finally “get” IV manipulation and DV measurement.

So, does showing students video and audio clips actually benefit learning or performance on assessments? My experience with this activity is particularly interesting because it taught me that using media or multimedia for classroom assessment may not necessarily lead to better understanding, even though students expressed a preference for these formats. Student preference for these formats does, however, suggest that instructors can use multimedia as a valuable tool because they increase student engagement with course material.

Considerations

Some of the factors that instructors should consider when contemplating the use of multimedia for teaching and assessment include:

Familiarity: the written format is a common way to expose students to IV and DV identification, which they may have encountered in previous courses. It is also the most common assessment method (tests and assignments), and therefore students are familiar with this format from high school. If planning to use multimedia for assessments, students should be given ample time to practice assessments using those less familiar formats.

Superfluous information: Both types of media clips contained additional details that were not directly relevant to the experiment. The presence of these extraneous details could distract students (especially those not sufficiently proficient in experimental design and unable to suppress this irrelevant information). Walker and Bourne (1961) found a linear decline in performance on a problem-solving task with each added piece of irrelevant information (also see Mayer, Heiser, & Loan, 2001, for a more recent investigation).

Entertainment: Students’ previous experience with MythBusters, Radiolab, or both (or perhaps television and radio more generally) as entertainment may result in difficulty focusing on the relevant experimental features of the clips (i.e., IVs and DVs), leading to declines in performance than with the written experimental scenarios,

Concluding remarks

Instructors should use caution when implementing new technologies and new teaching strategies. As my recent experience has demonstrated, just because they like it, doesn’t mean they necessarily learn, perform, or retain it better. Similarly, these new techniques or formats (although interesting for students) may not be appropriate to use during assessments. However, it is encouraging to know that they can lead to increased student engagement (e.g., MythBusters) which can lead to increased learning while in class! Because student engagement is so important, instructors should use many tools to encourage student learning in their discipline, while keeping in mind the considerations outlined above.

References

Burkley, E., & Burkley, M. (2009). Mythbusters: A tool for teaching research methods in psychology. Teaching of Psychology, 36(3), 179–184. doi:10.1080/00986280902739586

Mayer, R. E., Heiser, J., & Loan, S. (2001). Cognitive constraints on multimedia learning: When presenting more material results in less understanding. Journal of

Educational Psychology, 93(1), 187–198. doi:10.1037/0022-0663.93.1.187

Nowaczyk, R. H., Santos, L. T., & Patton, C. (1998). Student perception of multimedia in the undergraduate classroom. International Journal of Instructional Media, 25(4), 367–382.

Renninger, K. A. (1992). Individual interest and development: Implications for theory and practice. In K. A. Renninger, S. Hidi, & A. Krapp (Eds.), The role of interest in learning and development (pp. 361–398). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.

Tobias, S. (1994). Interest, prior knowledge and learning. Review of Educational Research, 64(1), 37–54. doi:10.3102/00346543064001037

Walker, C. M., & Bourne, L. E. (1961). The identification of concepts as a function of amounts of relevant and irrelevant information. The American Journal of Psychology, 74(3), 410–417. doi:10.2307/1419747

Author bio

Lynne N. Kennette, Ph.D. is a Professor of psychology and program coordinator for General Arts and Sciences programs at Durham College in Oshawa, Ontario (Canada). She is a graduate of Wayne State University (Detroit, Michigan, M.A. and Ph.D.) and the University of Windsor (Windsor, Ontario, B.A.). She teaches primarily general education courses in introductory psychology and her research focuses on the SoTL as well as how the mind processes languages. This research was conducted at Wayne State University.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Teaching in the Core Curriculum: Re-thinking our Approach to Introductory Psychology Courses

(Past member) — Wed, 15 Mar 2017 19:57:38 GMT

Teaching in the Core Curriculum:
Re-thinking our Approach to Introductory Psychology Courses

Amie R. McKibban
University of Southern Indiana

    “I am losing hope, Amie. Our students are being raised in a political system that is guided by economic theory. How can I teach students the value of higher education when they come to college asking ‘what job is this going to get me and how much money am I going to make?’” This was the start of a very long conversation I recently had with a former colleague. Indeed, his concerns are well founded, as higher education has been in the center of a heated debate for the last several years. Political critics and academic administrators alike have given much attention to the idea that we need more college graduates with specialized skill sets as a way to increase graduates’ employability. Harvard English professor James Engell (n.d.) laments, “an emphasis on majors believed to land a good job… appeal to ‘utility,’ to a supposedly clear-sighted appraisal of what the ‘real’ world demands of college graduates” (para.2). As Engell further discusses, this central parable in higher education is in conflict with the reality that few entry level jobs require four years of specialized knowledge.

    In a recent survey, the American Management Association (2012) found that over half of executives felt their employees scored average, at best, in four areas: critical thinking, communication, collaboration, and creativity. Most of the executives surveyed agreed, that they need “highly skilled employees to keep up with the fast pace of change” in business (para. 3). Yes, college graduates do need a specialized skill set, but one that focuses on critical thinking and creativity, rather than content-specific knowledge. As Engell (n.d.) points out, even professional schools (e.g., law and medicine) want students who have been exposed to a broad range of knowledge; students who can critically think and “look at life as a whole” (para.3). In other words, we need to begin reemphasizing the value of a liberal arts education and the utility of the core curriculum. As many of us in higher education know, the goal of a liberal arts education is not specialized knowledge or training. Rather, a liberal arts education aims to prepare students to function as productive citizens in a diverse and complex world (Task Force on General Education, 2007). Core curricula at many institutions embrace the same philosophy. This is often asserted in declarations similar to my own institution’s, stating that the core curriculum embraces non-specialized and non-vocational learning, with an emphasis on critical thinking (the ability to analyze and evaluate information) and information processing (the ability to locate, gather, and process information).

    With this in mind, I argue that what the “real” world actually demands of our students is at the very heart of the core curriculum: a curriculum that prepares students for citizenry and productivity, regardless of major. Further, I propose that teaching Introductory Psychology from a core curriculum perspective is a step toward addressing the disconnect Engell so eloquently discusses. Although numerous instructors may currently approach the teaching of Introductory Psychology as a core curriculum class, there are just as many who take a content-based approach. That is, structuring the class with the goal of preparing students to succeed in subsequent psychology courses should they declare a major in psychology. For those of you who fall into this latter category, I encourage you to reconsider the guiding philosophy of the course. In the remainder of this essay, I offer steps (points of consideration) in restructuring the course, and reflect on my own personal experience teaching the class for 13 years, providing insights and examples to help guide you through these considerations. I strongly believe in academic freedom, and therefore these should be taken as general guidelines. You know your students, community, and state requirements best, hence; the content of your actual class should be tailored accordingly.

Step 1: Develop a course that reaches the majority.

    Although many of us would prefer to receive “graduate-school-bound” students in our classrooms, the reality of teaching is that many students who cross our paths will discontinue their formal educational pursuits after obtaining a bachelor’s degree. Others discontinue before completion of their degree. The majority of students will need to be prepared, as well as possible, for the realities of the working world. A core curriculum approach best meets this reality; I structure my Introductory Psychology course accordingly. Much of my course’s focus is on application of the material to the real world (i.e., making the connections between theory and example) rather than memorization of content. I achieve this largely by telling stories, giving personal anecdotes, discussing clips from popular television shows, and analyzing articles in local and national newspapers.

    My approach is based on fulfilling two tenets of the core curriculum: critical thinking and information processing. Using content from the text to critically evaluate a news article, for example, reinforces the importance of a broad knowledge base for the students. It also models creativity,; one of the four skills sets discussed by the American Management Association (2012). By making the course material relevant to their lives, students are better equipped (and more motivated) to actively engage with the content. As one student recently wrote in my evaluations, “Many of the personal anecdotes and stories that were used to help teach the concepts will be with me for a long time.” The point is this: what you do with the content is much more memorable and meaningful than the content itself. This notion brings me to the second step in re-thinking Introductory Psychology as a core curriculum class.

Step 2: Choose content for your course based on usability.

    Often times we feel pressure to cover as much material as possible. This makes sense if you are preparing students for the AP test in psychology or if the only students required to take Introductory Psychology at your institution are psychology majors. For many of us, however, this course is part of a larger curriculum, and many students (especially freshman and sophomores) will filter through our classrooms. As such, I argue that it is not the quantity of information we cover that is important, but the quality. Cut content for the sake of experience. Although this may cause some of you to cringe, I offer this: there are many terms, definitions, and facts that we forget along the way (really, how many of you can remember everything from your intro to political science course?), however, we remember the process. That is, our students may not remember the difference between a conditioned and unconditioned stimulus, but if we make the content experiential they will remember the process of classical conditioning.

    Given that many Introductory Psychology students will not become psychology majors, you should choose content by asking yourself “if this were the only course my students took, what would I want them to understand?” That is, what material (theories and concepts) will help students become more productive citizens? What do you feel is most important for them to understand and use in their everyday lives? In other words, what processes are important? For example, I always cover judgmental heuristics when discussing cognitive psychology, using current events in politics and recent findings in medicine. Indeed, understanding how humans make decisions is important in being able to make sound decisions and discover creative solutions. It is also an important process in becoming a knowledgeable consumer of information and services. What processes you feel are important to achieving the goals of the core curriculum are up to you. Choose them, and spend time on them in class. The students will remember these things. As a former student recently told me, “Every time I watch the news or read an article on Facebook, I can’t help but think of you and everything we learned in class. I find myself exclaiming ‘Darn it, McKibban!’ all of the time.”

Step 3: Seek continual feedback from your students.

    Structuring your course in a way that promotes skill development, rather than content specific knowledge (application rather than memorization) requires continual feedback from your students. Waiting for the results of your teacher evaluations is not sufficient. I have found that having someone outside of my department come in for 20 minutes and run a focus group (while I am not there) results in the best feedback. With whatever approach works for you, ask your students, in an anonymous format, what they find effective about your teaching style, what content they have found most applicable and why, what is working for them and what is not. Tailor the questions to the individual class and discuss the results the next class period. This is something that can be done one to two times during the semester. Students will have suggestions, as well as good insights. The one “golden rule” of implementing this feedback is that you do make changes, when reasonable.

    This idea of a continual feedback loop is not only mutually beneficial, but speaks to the goals of the core curriculum. It gives your students decision making power over their education and provides them with experience in collaborating with an expert in the field when making those decisions. If we are to prepare students for the demands of the world, effectively communicating with others is a skill they must develop, especially when those “others” are people in higher positions. Again, this process is important in developing a course that promotes critical thinking and assists in the development of communication, collaboration, and creativity. Not to mention, you will learn just as much from this process as your students.

Concluding Remarks

    The steps I have offered are meant to give you a framework in reconsidering the guiding philosophy of Introductory Psychology course development. Given the nature and breadth of the course, we have the unique opportunity to prepare our students for citizenry and productivity; for the challenge of seeing the world as a whole; and for a lifetime of critical thinking and reflection. I encourage you to ask, given your academic environment and situation, if your students would benefit from a focus on quality over quantity. I challenge all of us to find the best way possible to meet the needs of our introductory students, knowing that many of them may not finish college, or will complete a degree outside of the field of psychology. I ask you to tell your students that “whether or not you stay in college and no matter what major you ultimately choose, I promise that you will use the information learned in this class,” and then live up to that promise. After all, psychology in and of itself embraces the philosophy of a liberal arts education and the goals of a core curriculum, and what better class to demonstrate this with than Introductory Psychology? What better way can we tell students “this is the value of higher education?” I think that those of us who teach this class can relate to Engell’s (n.d.) statement that “the aims [of a liberal arts focus] are at once personal and social, private and public, economic, ethical, and intellectual” (para. 9).

References

American Management Association (2012). Executive summary: AMA 2012 critical skills survey. Retrieved from http://www.amanet.org/uploaded/2012-Critical-Skills-Survey.pdf

Engell, J. (n.d.). Professor of English James Engell offers his reflection on the value of a liberal arts education. Retrieved from http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/about/ learning/liberal_arts.html

Task Force on General Education, (2007). The value of a liberal arts education. Retrieved from http://www.admissions.college.harvard.edu/about/learning/liberal_arts.html

Amie R. McKibban, professor of psychology at the University of Southern Indiana, completed her PhD in community psychology in 2009. She has presented numerous papers and published in diverse areas, ranging from attitudes toward individuals in the LGBT community, sexual health and communication, happiness, community redevelopment, academic dishonesty, and perfectionism. Using a well-known program in a way that mobilizes allies and allows for solutions at each level, she founded and directs a community and campus wide Safe Zone program. In the first few years of her tenure at the University of Southern Indiana, she has received the Willie Effie Thomas award and Phenomenal Women of USI award for her work in social justice, as well as the H. Lee Cooper Core Curriculum award for her excellence in the teaching of psychology.

E-xcellence in Teaching: Four Simple Strategies from Cognitive Psychology for the Classroom (Part 1)

(Past member) — Sat, 04 Mar 2017 22:29:42 GMT

Four Simple Strategies from Cognitive Psychology for the Classroom

Megan A. Smith (Rhode Island College)

Christopher R. Madan (Boston College)

Yana Weinstein (University of Massachusetts Lowell)

Scientists focusing on educational research questions have a great deal of information that can be utilized in the classroom. However, there is not often bidirectional communication between researchers and practitioners in the field of education as a whole (see Roediger, 2013). In this article, we describe the science behind four evidence-based teaching strategies: (1) providing visual examples, (2) teaching students to explain and to do, (3) spaced practice, and (4) frequent quizzing. Below, we provide concise overview of these strategies and examples of how they can be implemented in the classroom before describing the science behind each strategy:

1. Providing visual examples

Relevant cognitive concepts: Dual coding

Description: Combining pictures with words.

Application examples (using social psychology topics):

Students can draw examples of factors determining liking or loving. For example, two people who are close vs. far away, two people who are similar vs. different, or a visual depiction of reciprocity

Instructors can make sure to provide video depictions of experiments where available to go with verbal descriptions (e.g., Milgram, misattribution of arousal)

2.      Teaching students to explain and do

Relevant cognitive concepts: Elaborative interrogation; Levels of processing; Enactment effect

Description: Asking and explaining why a factor or concept is true; asking students to perform an action.

Application examples (using social psychology topics):

Students can ask and explain what factors contribute to whether one person helps another person.

Instructors can provide students with example scenarios of a person in need of help and ask students to describe and explain why they think a passerby may or may not help.

3.      Spaced practice

Relevant cognitive concepts: Spacing; Interleaving; Distributed practice; Optimal lab

Description: Creating a study schedule that spreads study activities out over time.

Application examples (using social psychology topics):

Students can block off time to study for 30 minutes each day rather than only studying right before a test or exam.

Instructors can assign online quizzes that interleave questions from various chapters.

4.      Frequent quizzing

Relevant cognitive concepts: Testing effect; Retrieval practice; Retrieval-based learning

Description: Bringing learned information to mind from long-term memory.

Application examples (using social psychology topics):

o   Students can practice writing out everything they know about a topic, for example conformity, obedience, and bystander effects.

o   Instructors can give frequent low-stakes quizzes in the classroom or online to encourage retrieval practice.

Instructors can find free teaching materials for each of these strategies on the Learning Scientists website (www.learningscientists.org/downloadable-materials).

We focus on these strategies because they were highlighted in a recent policy report from the National Council on Teacher Quality (Pomerance, Greenberg, & Walsh, 2016), which identified key teaching strategies based on evidence from the science of learning. The report found that few of the 48 teacher-training textbooks they examined cover any of these learning principles well–and that none covered more than two of them (but see Thomas & Goering, 2016). These strategies also reiterate recommendations made in an earlier guide commissioned by the U.S. Department of Education (Pashler, Bain, Bottge, Graesser, Koedinger, McDaniel, & Metcalfe, 2007; also see Dunlosky, Rawson, Marsh, Nathan, & Willingham, 2013). Thus, there seems to be a gap between the research – converging evidence from controlled laboratory studies and classroom studies – and practical use of the strategies in education. While there are in-depth reviews on each of these strategies, here we provide a concise, teacher-ready overview of these strategies and how they could be applied in the classroom.

1. Providing visual examples

Learning can be substantially enhanced if verbal information is accompanied by visual examples. This coupling of verbal and visual information is supported by the ‘dual-coding theory’ (Paivio, 1986). This theory attributes the mnemonic benefits of providing visual examples to different cognitive processes associated with processing words and images, or even words that describe concrete ideas. This can be particularly useful when teaching abstract concepts (see Figure 1 for an example, http://www.learningscientists.org/dual-coding-example), as associating concrete and abstract terms can improve memory for the abstract information (Madan, Glaholt, & Caplan, 2010).

Additionally, there is clear evidence that memory for pictures is superior to memory for words (Paivio & Csapo, 1969; 1973). However, this effect is fundamentally distinct from the notion of “learning styles”, where information to be learned is presented in a learner’s preferred modality. This type of differentiation is not supported by cognitive research (Rohrer & Pashler, 2012) and has often been described as a myth or urban legend (Coffield, Moseley, Hall, & Ecclestone, 2004; Hattie & Yates, 2014; Kirschner & van Merriënboer, 2013). Rather than diagnosing each student’s style and matching instruction for each individual, teachers can couple visual examples with text for all students.

2. Teaching students to explain and to do

One of the most effective methods to improve learning of information is to have students engage with the material more ‘deeply’, also known as elaboration (Craik & Lockhart, 1972; also see Lockhart & Craik, 1990). Elaboration has been defined in many ways, but most simply it involves connecting new information to pre-existing knowledge. Perhaps William James said it best: “The art of remembering is the art of thinking [...] our conscious effort should not be so much to impress or retain [knowledge] as to connect it with something already there. The connecting is the thinking; and, if we attend clearly to the connection, the connected thing, will certainly be likely to remain within recall” (James, 1899, p. 143). Two forms of elaboration are readily applicable to classroom learning: having students explain why something is the case, and having students perform actions.

Elaborative processing can be fostered by having students question the material that they are studying; for instance, by asking them to produce their own explanations for why a fact is true, rather than just presenting them with a complete explanation (Pressley, McDaniel, Turnure, Wood, & Ahmad, 1987). This elaboration technique is flexible enough to work in a variety of different learning situations (e.g., for students working alone or in groups, Kahl & Woloshyn, 1994). However, work on elaborative interrogation outside of the lab is just beginning (Smith, Holliday, and Austin, 2010) and we need stronger evidence from the classroom before we can confidently claim that this technique is helpful (Dunlosky et al., 2013). Another relevant technique is that of self-explanation, where students walk themselves through the steps they take during learning. This technique is helpful both when students engage in it spontaneously (Chi, Bassok, Lewis, Reimann, & Glaser, 1989), and also when teachers prompt students to produce the self-explanations (Chi, De Leeuw, Chiu, & LaVancher, 1994).

When feasible, the most elaborative way to process information is by ‘doing’. When information could either be learned by hearing about an action, watching someone else do the action, or having the student themselves perform the action, retention was best in cases where the student performed the action themselves (Cohen, 1981; Engelkamp & Cohen, 1991). This action component can build upon the previously described dual-coding theory (Engelkamp & Zimmer, 1984; Madan & Singhal, 2012). In the classroom, this type of learning could be supported by hands-on activities (e.g., science experiments, or getting students to draw their own diagrams; Wammes et al., 2016) or field trips to museums or nature sites.

Read Part II at: http://teachpsych.org/E-xcellence-in-Teaching-Blog/4648286

E-xcellence in Teaching: Four Simple Strategies from Cognitive Psychology for the Classroom (Part 2)

(Past member) — Sat, 04 Mar 2017 22:24:55 GMT

3. Spaced practice

We often tell our students that cramming “doesn’t work”. That is good advice–but is not entirely true. As many students have discovered, “cramming”–an intense study period that occurs shortly before one’s memory is to be tested–sometimes does work. Cramming often produces adequate performance on an imminent exam (Roediger & Karpicke, 2006); unless the cramming is done instead of sleep, in which case the sleep deprivation outweighs any gains from cramming (Gillen‐O’Neel, Huynh, & Fuligni, 2013). The information learned through cramming, however, will subsequently be rapidly forgotten (Bjork & Bjork, 2011). In order for information to be retained more sustainably and over longer periods of time, it needs to be revisited on multiple occasions spaced out over time. This is known as distributed practice, or the spacing effect, which has been in the literature since Ebbinghaus first discovered it in the late 19th century (Ebbinghaus, 1885/1913). Despite much converging evidence over the past 100 years (see Cepeda, Pashler, Vul, Wixted, & Rohrer, 2006), this practice has not made its way into mainstream education (Kang, 2016).

In the cognitive literature, a distinction is made between spacing and interleaving, i.e., switching back and forth between different topics or question types within a topic (Rohrer & Taylor, 2007). That is, Storm, Bjork, and Storm (2010) showed that interleaving produces benefits that cannot entirely be accounted for by spacing. However, in practice, it is hard to imagine an educationally relevant situation in which spacing and interleaving would be dissociated. We propose, then, that the theoretical distinction between spacing and interleaving may not be critical in terms of practical applications. Instead, teachers can focus more generally on trying to provide students with opportunities to space their studying.

One implementation issue is that spacing hurts performance in the short-term, which makes it less appealing. Students typically feel overconfident when they cram, while spacing out learning leads them to feel relatively less confident (Bjork, 1999); but this is a “desirable difficulty”, which helps learning in the long-term (Bjork, 1994). When making predictions about future performance based on different study schedules, students tend to underestimate the benefits of spacing (Logan, Castel, Haber, & Viehman, 2012). Another reason why spacing might not be used by students as often as we’d like was recently suggested by Kang (2016): this strategy may require more advance planning than simply studying one topic until a saturation point is reached. More research is necessary to fine-tune implementation of spaced study schedules, and would preferably involve teachers in classrooms.

4. Frequent quizzing

The use of retrieval practice to aid learning has been a major focus of the applied cognitive literature in the past decade. As with spacing, the finding that testing strengthens memory is not new (Gates, 1917). However, the message that testing helps learning is somewhat politically charged and often lost when teachers hear the word “testing” because this activates ideas related to high-stakes standardized testing. It’s important to note that frequent testing does not have to be presented as a formal quiz; any activity that promotes retrieval of target information should help (e.g., Karpicke, Blunt, Smith, & Karpicke, 2014).

Although the mechanisms behind the retrieval practice effect are not yet fully understood, the findings are quite clear: when preparing for a test, practicing retrieving information from memory is a much more effective strategy that restudying that information (Roediger & Karpicke, 2006). This is true even when there is no opportunity to receive feedback on the quiz (Smith, Roediger, & Karpicke, 2013), as long as performance on the practice quiz is not too low (Kang, McDermott, & Roediger, 2007). The only notable exception to the retrieval practice effect is when the final test is occurring immediately after study, in which case restudying can sometimes be more effective than testing (Smith et al., 2013). However, unless students are reviewing their notes before walking into the exam room, in general it is quite rare for students to be anticipating an immediate test situation while studying. Thus, in regular exam preparation situations, a strong recommendation can be made from the literature: students ought to practice retrieval.

A good way to integrate quizzes into regular teaching is to provide opportunities for retrieval practice during learning; quiz questions interspersed during learning produce the same benefit to long-term retention as quiz questions presented at the end of a learning episode such as a lecture (Weinstein, Nunes, & Karpicke, 2016). In addition to providing retrieval practice, this method also boosts learning by maintaining test expectancy throughout the learning experience (Weinstein, Gilmore, Szpunar, & McDermott, 2014). A combined benefit of retrieval practice and spacing can be gained from engaging in retrieval practice multiple times. Creating the specific spacing schedule for a particular educational situation is tricky because it depends how strong the original memory is, and how quickly forgetting is going to happen for that information (Cepeda, Vul, Rohrer, & Wixted, 2008). Without the use of sophisticated software to schedule spacing, a more practical suggestion may be for teachers to include quiz questions from previous topics throughout the semester, in order to facilitate a reasonable amount of spaced practice.

Conclusion

There is an unending supply of suggestions on how students can learn information more effectively. Here we draw from established cognitive psychology research and distill four simple strategies to enhance classroom learning. These four strategies are: (1) providing visual examples, (2) teaching students to explain and to do, (3) spaced practice, and (4) frequent quizzing. More specifically: (1) Try to present information with both text and pictures; (2) Get students to explain the information they are learning, or if possible, have them act things out; (3) Create opportunities to revisit information over the course of a semester; and (4) Include low-stakes quizzes throughout learning to provide retrieval practice. Critically, each of these strategies is strongly supported by extant research and can be readily implemented in the classroom.

References

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Bjork, E. L., & Bjork, R. A. (2011). Making things hard on yourself, but in a good way: Creating desirable difficulties to enhance learning. In M. A. Gernsbacher, R. W. Pew, L. M. Hough, & J. R. Pomerantz (Eds.), Psychology and the real world: Essays illustrating fundamental contributions to society (pp. 56-64). New York: Worth Publishers.

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Hattie, J., & Yates, G. (2014). Visible learning and the science of how we learn. New York: Routledge.

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Kang, S. H. (2016). Spaced repetition promotes efficient and effective learning policy implications for instruction. Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 3, 12-19. doi: 10.1177/2372732215624708.

Kang, S. H., McDermott, K. B., & Roediger III, H. L. (2007). Test format and corrective feedback modify the effect of testing on long-term retention. European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 19, 528-558. doi: 10.1080/09541440601056620

Karpicke, J. D., Blunt, J. R., Smith, M. A., & Karpicke, S. S. (2014). Retrieval-based learning: The need for guided retrieval in elementary school children. Journal of Applied Research in Memory and Cognition, 3, 198-206. doi:10.1016/j.jarmac.2014.07.008

Kirschner, P. A., & van Merriënboer, J. J. (2013). Do learners really know best? Urban legends in education. Educational Psychologist, 48, 169-183. doi: 10.1080/00461520.2013.804395

Lockhart, R. S., & Craik, F. I. M. (1990). Levels of processing: A retrospective commentary on a framework for memory research. Canadian Journal of Psychology, 44, 87–112. doi: 10.1037/h0084237

Logan, J. M., Castel, A. D., Haber, S., & Viehman, E. J. (2012). Metacognition and the spacing effect: the role of repetition, feedback, and instruction on judgments of learning for massed and spaced rehearsal. Metacognition and Learning, 7, 175-195. doi: 10.1007/s11409-012-9090-3

Madan, C. R., Glaholt, M. G., & Caplan, J. B. (2010). The influence of item properties on association-memory. Journal of Memory and Language, 63, 46-63. doi:10.1016/j.jml.2010.03.001

Madan, C. R., & Singhal, A. (2012). Using actions to enhance memory: Effects of enactment, gestures, and exercise on human memory. Frontiers in Psychology, 3, 507. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2012.00507

Moscovitch, & H. L. Roediger (Eds.), Perspectives on human memory and cognitive aging: Essays in honour of Fergus I. M. Craik (pp. 28-47). Philadelphia: Psychology Press.

Paivio, A. (1986). Mental representations: A dual coding approach. New York: Oxford University Press.

Paivio, A., & Csapo, K. (1969). Concrete image and verbal memory codes. Journal of Experimental Psychology, 80, 279-285. doi: 10.1037/h0027273

Paivio, A., & Csapo, K. (1973). Picture superiority in free recall: Imagery or dual coding? Cognitive Psychology, 5, 176-206. doi: 10.1016/0010-0285(73)90032-7

Pashler, H., Bain, P. M., Bottge, B. A., Graesser, A., Koedinger, K., McDaniel, M., & Metcalfe, J. (2007). Organizing instruction and study to improve student learning (NCER 2007-2004). Washington, DC: National Center for Education Research, Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education. Retrieved from http://ncer.ed.gov.

Pomerance, L., Greenberg, J., and Walsh, K. (January 2016). Learning About Learning: What Every New Teacher Needs to Know. Washington, D.C.: National Council on Teacher Quality. Retrieved from http://www.nctq.org/dmsView/Learning_About_Learning_Report.

Pressley, M., McDaniel, M. A., Turnure, J. E., Wood, E., & Ahmad, M. (1987). Generation and precision of elaboration: Effects on intentional and incidental learning. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 13(2), 291-300. doi: 10.1037/0278-7393.13.2.291

Roediger, H. L. (2013). Applying cognitive psychology to education: Translational educational science. Psychological Science in the Public Interest, 14,1-3. doi: 10.1177/1529100612454415

Roediger, H. L., & Gallo, D. A. (2002). Levels of processing: Some unanswered questions. In M. Naveh-Benjamin, M. Moscovitch, & H. L. Roediger (Eds.), Perspectives on human memory and cognitive aging: Essays in honour of Fergus I. M. Craik (pp. 28-47). Philadelphia: Psychology Press.

Roediger, H. L., & Karpicke, J. D. (2006). Test-enhanced learning: Taking memory tests improves long-term retention. Psychological Science, 17, 249-255. doi: 10.1111/j.1467-9280.2006.01693.x

Smith, B. L., Holliday, W. G., & Austin, H. W. (2010). Students' comprehension of science textbooks using a question‐based reading strategy. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 47, 363-379. doi: 10.1002/tea.20378

Smith, M. A., Roediger, H. L., & Karpicke, J. D. (2013). Covert retrieval practice benefits retention as much as overt retrieval practice. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 39, 1712-1725. doi: 10.1037/a0033569

Storm, B. C., Bjork, R. A., & Storm, J. C. (2010). Optimizing retrieval as a learning event: When and why expanding retrieval practice enhances long-term retention. Memory & Cognition, 38, 244-253. doi: 10.3758/MC.38.2.244

Rohrer, D., & Pashler, H. (2012). Learning styles: Where's the evidence? Medical Education, 46, 34-35. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2923.2012.04273.x

Rohrer, D., & Taylor, K. (2007). The shuffling of mathematics practice problems improves learning. Instructional Science, 35, 481-498. doi: 10.1007/s11251-007-9015-8

Thomas, P. L., & Goering, C. Z. (2016, March). Review of learning about learning: What every new teacher needs to know. Retrieved from http://nepc.colorado.edu/thinktank/review-teacher-education

Wammes, J. D., Meade, M. E., & Fernandes, M. A. (2015). The drawing effect: Evidence for reliable and robust memory benefits in free recall. Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, 69, 1752-1776. doi: 10.1080/17470218.2015.1094494

Weinstein, Y., Gilmore, A. W., Szpunar, K. K., & McDermott, K. B. (2014). The role of test expectancy in the build-up of proactive interference in long-term memory. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Learning, Memory, and Cognition, 40, 1039-1048. doi: 10.1037/a0036164

Weinstein, Y., Nunes, L. D., & Karpicke, J. D. (2016). On the placement of practice questions during study. Journal of Experimental Psychology: Applied, 22, 72-84. doi: 10.1037/xap0000071

Megan Smith is an Assistant Professor at Rhode Island College. She received her Master’s in Experimental Psychology at Washington University in St. Louis and her PhD in Cognitive Psychology from Purdue University. Megan’s area of expertise is in human learning and memory, and applying the science of learning in educational contexts. Megan is passionate about bridging the gap between research and practice in education. In an effort to promote more conversations between researchers and practitioners, she co-founded The Learning Scientists (www.learningscientists.org). Her research program focuses on retrieval-based learning strategies, and the way activities promoting retrieval can improve meaningful learning in the classroom. Megan addresses empirical questions such as: What retrieval practice formats promote student learning? What retrieval practice activities work well for different types of learners? And, why does retrieval increase learning?

Christopher Madan is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Boston College. He received his PhD in Psychology from the University of Alberta. Chris’ area of expertise is in human memory and decision making, particularly in factors that can make some information more memorable. He studies the role of factors intrinsic to the to-be-remembered information, such as emotion and reward, as well as mnemonic strategies, particularly the Method of Loci. His research program is particularly interested in how biases in memory encoding and retrieval can manifest in other cognitive domains. Chris uses a variety of methodological approaches, including cognitive psychology, neuroimaging, and computational modeling to investigate ‘what makes memories last’.

Yana Weinstein is an Assistant Professor at University of Massachusetts, Lowell. She received her PhD in Psychology from University College London and had 4 years of postdoctoral training at Washington University in St. Louis. The broad goal of her research is to help students make the most of their academic experience. Yana's research interests lie in improving the accuracy of memory performance and the judgments students make about their cognitive functions. Yana tries to pose questions that have direct applied relevance, such as: How can we help students choose optimal study strategies? Why are test scores sometimes so surprising to students? And how does retrieval practice help students learn? She recently co-founded The Learning Scientists (www.learningscientists.org) with Megan Smith.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Enhancing Student Learning with Podcasting and Screencasting

(Past member) — Thu, 16 Feb 2017 00:19:46 GMT

Enhancing Student Learning with Podcasting and Screencasting

David B. Miller, Ph.D.
Professor, Department of Psychology
University of Connecticut

    Portable devices for media consumption became prominent in the 1950s and 1960s with the growing popularity of the transistor radio (Schiffer, 1991). Since then, there has been a cultural shift fostered by the invention of newer technologies such as the Sony Walkman in the 1980s, and in the current century, the Apple iPod and similar personal listening devices. A vast ecosystem of accessories that facilitate portability has co-evolved with these technologies (Darlin, 2006). While these devices were originally intended for listening to musical recordings, other media such as books, newspapers, magazines, movies, and podcasts have since gained popularity in the portable media market.

    Podcasts are digital recordings that can be downloaded from the Internet or from another source, such as Apple’s iTunes Store, from which they are also available for subscription, usually at no cost. Once downloaded, they can be accessed directly on a computer or transferred to a portable digital media player, such as an iPod, iPhone, or any other mobile device capable of playing audio files. (Despite the name, “podcast,” one does not need an Apple “iPod” to use these digital recordings.)

    When podcasts were first introduced around 2004, they were audio recordings. While this has remained the primary format, others have evolved. An “enhanced” podcast contains not only audio, but also a visual component, typically a series of static (i.e., no animations) Microsoft PowerPoint or Apple Keynote screens. Enhanced podcasts also contain a navigation menu. When accessed on a computer via iTunes, a new menu item appears called, “Chapters.” Clicking on this unfurls a list of “chapters,” along with a small visual icon, of each screen composing the podcast. Users can navigate to whichever chapter they want to hear, or can simply allow the podcast to play sequentially. Enhanced podcasts can be created in a variety of ways, but the most popular software packages are Apple GarageBand, which comes bundled with every Macintosh computer as part of the iLife software suite, and a shareware software package from Humble Daisy called ProfCast (http://www.profcast.com). For non-iTunes users, enhanced podcasts can be saved as .mov files playable on the Internet.

    Finally, actual video podcasts have become more prevalent. They are best used only when a video component is essential, because video can greatly increase the file size depending on how it is encoded, its dimensions, and other factors. For example, if the university cancels class because of bad weather, I upload a video podcast of that day’s lecture to keep my class on schedule. In this case, video is essential. Some podcasts, such as speeches by notable individuals, are available either as audio-only or as video. The visual aspect is appealing in such cases, but the audio alone can suffice.

iCube: Issues In Intro

    I began my first podcast series in the Fall of 2005, in connection with my 315-student General Psychology course. The main component of iCube: Issues In Intro is a weekly discussion of course material that I conduct with a small group of up to 20 students. The discussions, which typically last 40-50 minutes, are primarily student-driven (Sener, 2007). They ask questions and I respond. Nothing is scripted. These casual discussions take place in a seminar room near my office in which I set up eight microphones connected to an audio mixer, which, in turn, is connected to my laptop computer for capturing the audio.

    Students who participate receive no extra credit for doing so. Some students return every week, and others stop by only a few times in the semester. Because I have to identify a time when both I and a seminar room are available, there are usually many students who would like to participate but cannot due to schedule conflicts. I encourage students to send in questions via email if they are unable to attend, and we address those items in the podcast.

    The participants are highly motivated and willing to invest the extra time. Interestingly, the majority are not psychology majors, but many of them become very engaged in the course content via our podcast discussions and end up either switching majors, incorporating psychology as a double major, or pursuing a minor in psychology. As an added benefit, I’ve become the academic advisor of former podcast participants. In large classes, students and professors often have difficulty getting acquainted with one another, but podcasting greatly facilitates the kind of scholarly interactions that might otherwise not occur in large classroom settings. Having podcast participants as my advisees enables me to better serve them, and, of course, there are additional benefits to the students in terms of having at least one professor who can write somewhat detailed letters of recommendation in the years that follow.

    Perhaps most importantly, these weekly discussions provide a means of personalizing the course, making it seem psychologically “smaller.” The large class sessions are lectures with minimal opportunity for discussion; but, students who participate in the podcast recordings have an opportunity to interact with me (and me with them) in a relatively informal context. Students who routinely listen to the podcasts also report of sense of having a more personal connection with me and with the student participants. While I prefer lecturing with computerized multimedia in my courses, podcasting provides an important means to incorporate active learning for those students seeking such an opportunity (McLoughlin & Lee, 2007).

    In addition to the weekly discussion, there are two other components of iCube: Precasts and Postcasts. Precasts are short, enhanced podcasts (5-15 minutes long) that I record twice weekly (because I lecture twice each week). They’re intended to provide students with important points that I’ll cover in the next lecture. I also play the Precasts before class begins for students who arrive early, which gives them yet another way of accessing the material and also provides a mechanism for “setting up” the lecture that immediately follows.

    The third component of iCube is the Postcasts, which I create sporadically. Postcasts are content modules that I record to clarify difficult concepts, or items that I feel I didn’t cover clearly in class. In recent years, I have uploaded video screencasts (see below) of full lectures to keep the class on track when school is cancelled.

    iCube is accessible via iTunes for free subscription. As is the case with participating in the recording sessions, listening to the podcasts is entirely optional. I make it available as one of several course enhancements to aid in student learning.

    Every semester, I add items to the University course evaluations to ascertain how many students are listening to iCube and whether they believe that these podcasts help them learn the material. Data gathered over the course of eight semesters starting in Fall 2005, indicate that approximately 40% of the class listen more than occasionally to the podcasts. Of that 40%, 76% of the students report that the podcasts enhance their learning. Most of the remaining 24% report that the podcasts were only marginally helpful. The reason that most of the non-listeners give for not accessing the podcasts is that they don’t feel they have enough time do so.

Animal Behavior Podcasts

    In the Fall of 2006 (one year after launching iCube), I began a second podcast series for my upper-division Animal Behavior course. This course, which used to have a capacity of 50 students, now has a capacity of 150, and is also taught as a lecture. Among the 150 students, there are typically about 10 who are in the University Honors Program. Honors students at UConn may, with an instructor’s permission, convert a non-Honors course to obtain Honors credit. (Students in the upper-division Honors Scholars Program need 12 Honors credits to graduate with Honors, along with other requirements.)

    My Animal Behavior Podcasts series provides an opportunity to earn Honors credit in this course. It’s based on the iCube discussion model, but Honors students who participate are expected to attend regularly. In these 40-50-minute sessions, we discuss animal behavior course content. Like iCube, these discussions are informal and are distributed on iTunes. In recent years, there have been about 14 Honors students each semester earning Honors credit by participating in these podcasts.

Interactive Discussion vs. Coursecasts

    In higher education, podcasting gained popularity as a means of recording and distributing entire lectures (what I refer to as “coursecasts”). Lecture recording has been around at least since the invention of affordable, portable cassette tape recorders. Today’s coursecasts are much easier to distribute because of their digital format. At some universities, coursecasts can be created by any professor at the flick of a switch when they enter classrooms outfitted with recording equipment. But one wonders about the extent to which such ease of recording has been preceded by forethought regarding course enhancement.

    Some professors fear students might skip class if coursecasts are readily available (Young, 2008). To minimize attendance problems, some professors who do coursecasting have developed counter-strategies, such as giving regular in-class assessments, recording only a portion of each lecture, waiting a week or longer before uploading the recordings, or even eliminating coursecasting altogether if attendance drops significantly.

    My own experience at UConn with both General Psychology and Animal Behavior podcasts is that students not only view these podcasts as genuine enhancements over and above the classroom experience, but also that the podcasts help the students understand the material and become further engaged with course content. Nevertheless, coursecasting appears to dominate higher education podcasts (certainly those available via iTunes U).

    Coursecasting can also be helpful on religious holidays when observant students will not be in class, and when weather conditions are not threatening enough to deter some (but not all) commuting students, yet not bad enough to result in cancelled classes. The result is that students who have legitimate reasons for being absent from a particular lecture will still have the opportunity to access the course content.

    A major issue for coursecasting is the inclusion of copyrighted material in these distributed lectures. Materials that may have been used legally in a classroom through the “fair use” provision of the Copyright Law of the United States should not be distributed in downloadable podcasts. Instructors who record and then distribute lectures are legally required to edit out such materials prior to distribution. Unfortunately, some of the automated recording systems installed in lecture halls make this difficult because the files are immediately uploaded to a server. In situations where coursecasts are editable, instructors need to acquire expertise in editing as well as a willingness to devote the time for such post-production following each lecture. Thus, routine coursecasts not only have questionable value as an educational enhancement but also potentially have legal consequences.

    Coursecasts might provide an enhancement if approached differently. For example, instead of recording in-class lectures, the actual course content could be delivered by recordings of the professor for students to access online on a regular basis. Class time could then be used for discussion, clarification, demonstrations, examples and applications that weren’t included in the recorded podcasts, and student presentations. Perhaps a better way to conceptualize the application of such media for classroom use is to use the term “coursecast” in reference to a recording of a live classroom lecture, and “screencast” as a recording intended to substitute for a live lecture, thereby providing a basis for what has come to be known as a “hybrid” or “flipped” course.

Screencasts

    In a sense, a screencast can be viewed as an evolutionary advance relative to podcasts and coursecasts. Screencasts are dynamic in the sense that they are produced by recording all activity on one’s computer screen with added narration, edited with sometimes powerful post-production tools, and then exported as videos to be uploaded to the Internet for viewing. Software programs such as ScreenFlow (http://telestream.net) and Camtasia Studio (http://techsmith.com) offer powerful, but user-friendly interfaces for producing screencasts.

    Screencasts can range from simple tutorials (e.g., instructions to be followed in a laboratory course), elaborations of points made in class, or even entire lectures and entire courses, as would be the case with a hybrid or flipped course.

    In 2009, I used ScreenFlow to convert my large Animal Behavior lecture course to a hybrid course in which most of the content was delivered online via streaming video. Students were able to access the videos anytime on a password-protected server, and we met once weekly for discussion, questions, and additional course content not covered in the screencasts. The post-production editing tools enabled me to focus students’ attention on particular screen elements, which is not easily done in a live lecture. Additionally, students were able to pause the videos, replay parts if they so desired, and take thorough, high-quality notes.

    The time that it took (well over 400 hours) to produce the screencasts paid off in terms of student engagement in course material and learning. Almost half of the class of 140 students earned course grades of “A,” and not a single student failed the course the first time it was offered in Fall 2009. It’s been offered in this format every Fall since then with similar results.

    What is clear is that technology (podcasts, coursecasts, screencasts, and other innovations), when used properly, can serve as pedagogical enhancements. However, technology should not be used just for the sake of using it, or simply because it happens to be available. Pedagogy must always precede technology.

References

Darlin, D. (2006, February 3). The iPod ecosystem. The New York Times, C1.

McLoughlin, C., & Lee, M. J. W. (2007). Listen and learn: A systematic review of the evidence that podcasting supports learning in higher education. In: C. Montgomerie & J. Seale (Eds.), Proceedings of ED-MEDIA 2007 World Conference on Educational Multimedia, Hypermedia & Telecommunications (pp. 1669-1677). Vancouver, Canada, June 25-29, 2007.

Schiffer, M. B. (1991). The Portable Radio in American Life. Tuscon: The University of Arizona Press.

Sener, J. (2007). In search of student-generated content in online education. Retrieved February 15, 2013, from http://www.e-mentor.edu.pl/artykul/index/numer/21/id/467

Young, J. R. (2008). The lectures are recorded, so why go to class? The Chronicle of Higher Education, 54, A1.

***********************************

David Miller is a Professor of Psychology, Associate Department Head, and Coordinator of Undergraduate Studies at the University of Connecticut at Storrs. He received his Ph.D. at the University of Miami in 1973, and his research has focused on animal behavior, both in the field and in the laboratory. He was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the North Carolina Division of Mental Health, where he did field research on parent-offspring auditory interactions of several avian species. In 1977, he became an Alexander von Humboldt Fellow at the University of Bielefeld (Germany) in the Department of Ethology and a participant in a nine-month interdisciplinary conference on “Behavioral Development in Animals and Man” at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research. He returned to the North Carolina Division of Mental Health in 1978 as a Research Associate, where he began a long series of studies on alarm call responsivity of mallard ducklings, which continued when he joined the faculty at the University of Connecticut in 1980. Beginning around 1990, his long-standing interest in the effective use of multimedia in the classroom expanded and has continued to evolve. He has received several awards for teaching excellence at the University of Connecticut and, in 1989, was the recipient of The National Psi Chi/Florence L. Denmark Faculty Advisor Award “for outstanding contributions to Psi Chi and psychology.” He received the high honor of University of Connecticut Teaching Fellow (1997–1998), and, in 1999, his work in multimedia instructional design and classroom implementation was recognized with the Chancellor’s Information Technology Award. In 2005, he received the University of Connecticut Alumni Association Faculty Excellence Award in Teaching at the Undergraduate Level, as well as the 2005–2006 University of Connecticut Undergraduate Student Government Educator of the Year Award. In 2007, he received the University of Connecticut Outstanding Student Advisement and Advocacy Award, and his efforts in podcasting were recognized by the national publication, Campus Technology, which awarded him the 2007 Outstanding Innovator Award in Podcasting. In 2011, he received the Frank Costin Memorial Award from the National Institute on the Teaching of Psychology for promoting quality teaching methods, as illustrated in a poster on screencasting, and, in 2012, the Animal Behavior Society Distinguished Teaching Award. He has served on several editorial boards and was Editor-in-Chief of the scholarly journal, Bird Behavior for 15 years. In recent years, Dr. Miller has devoted considerable time in creating computerized, multimedia versions of his animal behavior and introductory psychology courses. Multimedia production of university-level educational material is one of his foremost activities. His most recent multimedia project involved a major transformation of his Animal Behavior course into 90 screencast movies, an effort that was also featured in Campus Technology magazine.

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: Ditching the “Disposable Assignment” in Favor of Open Pedagogy

(Past member) — Thu, 02 Feb 2017 14:07:54 GMT

Ditching the “Disposable Assignment” in Favor of Open Pedagogy

Rajiv S. Jhangiani

Kwantlen Polytechnic University

Ever since George Miller’s famous (1969) APA presidential address, many others have called upon our field to “give psychology away” (e.g., Epstein, 2006; Goldman, 2014; Klatzky, 2009; Lilienfeld, Ammirati, & Landfield, 2009; Tomes, 2000; Zimbardo, 2004). There is arguably no better way to achieve this than by adopting open pedagogy to place the knowledge base of our discipline in as many hands as possible.

With open pedagogy, students are not just consumers of educational resources but also producers of educational resources. A key aspect of open pedagogy therefore involves replacing “disposable assignments” with “renewable assignments” (Wiley, 2013). Disposable assignments are those that are typically only seen by the instructor. Students often see little point in them (and rarely revisit them) and many instructors despise grading them. David Wiley, an open education pioneer, describes them bluntly:

They’re assignments that add no value to the world – after a student spends three hours creating it, a teacher spends 30 minutes grading it, and then the student throws it away. Not only do these assignments add no value to the world, they actually suck value out of the world. Talk about an incredible waste of time and brain power (and a potentially huge source of cognitive surplus)! (2013, para. 5)

By contrast, renewable assignments are those in which the students’ energy and efforts are repurposed by having them generate materials and resources for the “commons,” including future students taking their course and other formal and informal learners around the world. The materials produced might include developing tutorials, wiki entries, or even videos posted online.

Incorporating openness into pedagogy is simultaneously liberating and terrifying. It challenges instructors to reflect on their practices and move away from the traditional top-down model of pedagogy by assigning open-ended problems and empowering students to act as co-creators (Rosen & Smale, 2015). But whereas it takes a degree of courage to untether oneself from the security and predictability of the staid research essay, once accomplished, the benefits to the learning process are sizable. For one, students and instructors work collaboratively towards creating resources for public consumption, adding tangible value to the world outside of their classroom. Second, students tend to invest more effort and care more deeply about the product when they know that their work has a larger potential audience than just their instructor (Farzan & Kraut, 2013). Third, open pedagogy unleashes the students’ creative potential, allowing them to ascend the rungs of the cognitive process dimension in Bloom’s revised taxonomy (Anderson & Krathwohl, 2001). Here they generate, plan, and produce instead of merely recognizing and recalling, in the process acquiring higher-order cognitive and meta-cognitive skills that will serve them throughout their university education and career. Fourth, depending on the specific nature of the assignment, the resource produced may serve as an enduring electronic portfolio of their academic work that can be shared with others, including potential employers. In this fashion they may showcase their writing skills (e.g., blogs, wiki entries, etc.), multimedia skills (e.g., videos, websites, etc.), or even their ability to integrate and apply research findings (e.g., policy proposals or briefs). And finally, “because any one of these remixes might end up helping next semester’s students finally grasp the concept that has proven so difficult in the past, faculty are willing to invest in feedback and encouragement at a different level” (Wiley, 2013, para. 16).

Instructors interested in experimenting with open pedagogy might, for example, design course assignments that require students to create a guide for parents on the use of rewards and punishments with young children based on principles from learning theory, design a public service announcement for a local nonprofit organization based on principles from social psychology, build and edit a wiki that might serve as an instructional resource for future students, write questions for an in-class practice quiz ahead of midterm examinations, or publish blog posts that critically analyze depictions of psychological phenomena in popular films. On a larger scale, an excellent example of an organized open pedagogy initiative is the Association for Psychological Science’s (APS) Wikipedia Initiative.

APS Wikipedia Initiative

Wikipedia is a free, online encyclopedia, written and edited collaboratively by those who use it. Its English language edition includes about 4.7 million articles and is the sixth most popular website in the world, with nearly 500 million unique visitors every month (“Wikipedia,” n.d.). Its incredible popularity among students, for whom it is often the first resource accessed when looking up background information for a term paper (Head & Eisenberg, 2009; Lim, 2009), is matched only by its equal unpopularity among faculty, who strongly caution against citing its articles or even penalize their students for doing so (Waters, 2007). Some instructors may work with librarians to better instruct their students on how (and why) to access refereed articles from research databases, but this strategy is merely a weak left jab at the problem. The APS Wikipedia Initiative (APSWI), on the other hand, presents a creative and pragmatic right hook.

Born out of a desire to “deploy the power of Wikipedia to represent scientific psychology as fully and as accurately as possible and thereby to promote the free teaching of psychology worldwide” (“APS Wikipedia Initiative,” n.d.), the APSWI serves to improve the very resource whose use psychology faculty routinely rail against.

For context, there are currently more than 8,500 articles on Wikipedia devoted to topics in psychology. At the time of this writing, only 63% of these have been assessed through Wikipedia’s peer assessment system. Far more terrifyingly, only 9% of these have achieved “good article” status while the remaining lower quality articles are viewed in excess of 64,000 times every six months (“APS Wikipedia Initiative,” n.d.).

These sorts of numbers are why, in 2011, then-APS President Mahzarin Banaji called upon psychology faculty to participate in the APSWI as contributors, reviewers, and especially through adopting open pedagogy:

The likely most effective way to generate contributions, in my opinion, is to include writing for Wikipedia as part of college and graduate-level courses. In this way, professors and students in a class can begin to populate Wikipedia on the topic of the course, taking advantage of the built-in expertise that is contained in that collective, in a semester long time frame. Writing Wikipedia entries from scratch, editing entries, or evaluating them can be a worthwhile learning experience in a standard classroom. Such work can teach students so much — that even the simplest ideas are hard to communicate to general audiences; that logic, strength of argument, flow and clarity of writing, citations of the appropriate literature, and, above all, accuracy need to be mastered in order to be a member of this guild. My request is that for any course that you are about to teach this semester and beyond, that you consider adding contribution to Wikipedia as part of the course’s requirements. (para. 8)

Many faculty have since responded to Banaji’s call. During the Fall 2011 and Spring 2012 semesters alone, 640 students across 36 classes participated in the APSWI. Collectively, they edited 840 articles – “the rough equivalent of writing a 1,200 page textbook in psychology” (Farzan & Kraut, 2013, p. 5). Participating instructors have ranged from those completely new to Wikipedia (e.g., Hoetger & Bornstein, 2012) to those with extensive experience (e.g., Marentette, 2014), and the classes enrolled have ranged from small seminars (e.g., Karney, 2012) to enormous 1,700 student sections (Joordens, 2012). The APSWI has also been incorporated into courses at all levels, displacing a research paper in an introductory psychology course (Ibrahim, 2012), a literature review in a 200-level cognitive psychology course (Munger, 2012), a research article review in an upper level course on memory (Hoetger & Bornstein, 2012), an essay for a fourth-year course on the history of psychology (Reynolds, 2011), a 15-page paper in a graduate seminar in social psychology (Karney, 2012), and a traditional final paper in a graduate course on clinical neuropsychology (Silton, 2012).

Naturally, appropriate instruction and support must be provided and the specific assignment (e.g., adding citations, writing or revising articles, being granted “good article” status by the Wikipedia community on the basis of the quality of writing, neutrality, and appropriate sourcing, etc.) must be tailored to the level and ability of the class. For example, introductory psychology students might be best served by working in teams and focusing their efforts on a small number of articles, adding citations, images, and links where necessary, tagging them appropriately when problems are located, and incorporating feedback from their peers and the Wikipedia community. The potential benefits to students from participating in the APSWI include achieving a deeper understanding of the topic (Farzan & Kraut, 2013), learning to evaluate and defend the credibility of their sources (Marentette, 2014), learning to write more concisely and think more critically (Farzan & Kraut, 2013), collaborating with students from other universities and around the world (Karney, 2012), learning to provide as well as receive constructive feedback (Ibrahim, 2012), enhancing digital literacy (Silton, 2012), and learning how to communicate ideas to a general audience (Association for Psychological Science, 2013).

Although some students begin a little wary of the assignment, they go on to derive excitement, meaning, and even pride from the open nature of their work, as the following instructor testimonials indicate:

The students also realized they were a valuable asset to Wikipedia. Their thinking and writing skills as well as their access to an extensive academic library were not broadly shared. As knowledge translators, they could also provide a service to the general public by clearly communicating basic concepts about language acquisition. They wondered who their readers might be: parents? teachers? students in developing countries? One thing that the students uniformly loved about this project was the possibility of other people seeing and recognizing their work. (Marentette, 2014, p. 37).

They felt their work was meaningful because their contributions are shared with the entire world, rather than just their instructor. They liked that their contributions will not end up in a drawer after the semester ends, but will continue to be available to many people as a useful resource. Some students even noted with pride that their contributions might have wider use than some articles published in academic journals. (Ibrahim, 2012, p. 29)

Of course, participating in the APSWI is not without its challenges, which include developing an appropriate rubric for grading (Silton, 2012), learning the writing style and referencing standards of Wikipedia (Reynolds, 2011), managing the time frame of the assignment (Marentette, 2014), and maintaining flexibility with the assignment guidelines (Hoetger & Bornstein, 2012). Some practical strategies for instructors considering participating in the APSWI include providing a list of topics not yet covered on Wikipedia, gaining experience with posting an article, looking through the sample Wikipedia assignments provided by the APS, making use of the many articles and step-by-step guides for editing Wikipedia articles and participating in the APSWI, and enlisting the help of a campus Wikipedia Ambassador (Hoetger & Bornstein, 2012; Ibrahim, 2012).

Concluding Thoughts

Adopting open pedagogy can seem daunting at first but does not have to mean designing an entirely new assignment or working with new media. All that is required is for the students to work towards producing a resource that others will find useful. This could include literature reviews, evidence-based policy recommendations, or practical guides for the application of psychological knowledge (e.g., promoting environmentally responsible behavior, parenting, etc.). However, if an assignment requires students to develop and exercise a new skill, instructors will need to plan to provide instruction and support throughout the process (e.g., it takes some practice to learn how to properly edit Wikipedia articles). Depending on the nature of the assignment, instructors may also have to develop or locate an appropriate grading rubric.

As mentioned earlier, adopting open pedagogy is simultaneously liberating and terrifying. With traditional (closed) assignments, vague guidelines, a poor design, unclear rubrics, and insufficient support remain hidden, with student evaluations and perhaps a few grey hairs being the only enduring record. With open pedagogy, on the other hand, both successes and failures with the assignment are much more public. But while this opens the instructor to more criticism, it is also an opportunity to share, collaborate, and receive constructive feedback. More importantly, it creates a foundation for our students to begin to invest more deeply, think more critically, work more collaboratively, and communicate more accessibly—exactly the skills needed to be able to “give psychology away.”

References

Anderson, L. W., & Krathwohl, D. (Eds.). (2001). A taxonomy for learning, teaching, and assessing: A revision of Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives. New York: Longman.

APS Wikipedia Initiative. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.apastyle.org/learn/faqs/web-page-no-author.aspx

Association for Psychological Science [PsychologicalScience]. (2013, May 23). 2013 APS convention video: The benefits of traditional vs. Wikipedia research assignments [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YBdQH0eIEQ&t=66

Banaji, M. (2011). Harnessing the power of Wikipedia for scientific psychology: A call to action. Observer, 24(2). Retrieved from http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/publications/observer/2011/february-11/harnessing-the-power-of-wikipedia-for-scientific-psychology-a-call-to-action.html

Epstein, R. (2006). Giving psychology away: A personal journey. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 1(4), 389-400. doi:10.1111/j.1745-6916.2006.00023.x

Farzan, R., & Kraut, R. E. (2013). Wikipedia classroom experiment: Bidirectional benefits of students’ engagement in online production communities. CHI'13: Proceedings of the ACM conference on human factors in computing systems (pp. 783-792). New York: ACM Press. doi:10.1145/2470654.2470765

Goldman, J. G. (2014). Giving psychological science away online. Observer, 27(3), 9-10.

Head, A. J., & Eisenberg, M. B. (2009, December 1). Lessons learned: How college students seek information in the digital age. Project Information Literacy Progress Report. Retrieved from the Project Information Literacy Website at the University of Washington: http://projectinfolit.org/pdfs/PIL_Fall2009_Year1Report_12_2009.pdf

Hoetger, L., & Bornstein, B. H. (2012). Enliven students’ assignments with Wikipedia. Observer, 25(4), 44-45.

Ibrahim, M. (2012). Reflections on Wikipedia in the classroom. Observer, 25(1), 29-30.

Joordens, S. (2012). Using Wikipedia in a mega classroom: A 1,700 student case study. Wikipedia Symposium.

Karney, B. (2012). Feedback from the whole world. Observer, 25(3), 45-46.

Klatzky, R. L. (2009). Giving psychological science away: The role of applications courses. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 4(5), 522-530. doi:10.1111/j.1745-6924.2009.01162.x

Lilienfeld, S. O., Ammirati, R., & Landfield, K. (2009). Giving debiasing away: Can psychological research on correcting cognitive errors promote human welfare? Perspectives on Psychological Science, 4(4), 390-398. doi:10.1111/j.1745-6924.2009.01144.x

Marentette, P. (2014). Achieving “good article” status in Wikipedia. Observer, 27(3), 25, 37.

Munger, M. (2012). Improving students’ writing with Wikipedia. Observer, 25(5), 43-45.

Reynolds, M. (2011). Wikipedia in the classroom. Observer, 24(7). Retrieved from http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/publications/observer/2011/september-11/wikipedia-in-the-classroom.html

Rosen, J. R., & Smale, M. A. (2015, January 7). Open digital pedagogy = critical pedagogy. Hybrid Pedagogy. Retrieved from http://www.hybridpedagogy.com/journal/open-digital-pedagogy-critical-pedagogy/

Silton, R. (2012). More than just a grade. Observer, 25(2). Retrieved from http://www.psychologicalscience.org/index.php/publications/observer/2012/february-12/more-than-just-a-grade.html

Tomes, H. (2000). Giving psychology away. Monitor on Psychology, 31(6). Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/monitor/jun00/itpi.aspx

Waters, N. (2007). Why you can’t cite Wikipedia in my class. Communications of the ACM, 50(9), 15-17. doi:10.1145/1284621.1284635

Wikipedia. (n.d.). In Wikipedia. Retrieved January 14, 2015, from
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Introduction

Wiley, D. (2013). What is open pedagogy? Retrieved from http://opencontent.org/blog/archives/2975

Zimbardo, P. G. (2004). Does psychology make a significant difference in our lives? American Psychologist, 59(5), 339-351. doi:10.1037/0003-066X.59.5.339

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Rajiv Jhangiani is the Open Studies Teaching Fellow and Psychology Faculty at Kwantlen Polytechnic University in Vancouver, BC, where he conducts research on open education and the scholarship of teaching and learning. A recipient of the Robert E. Knox Master Teacher Award from the University of British Columbia and the Dean of Arts Teaching Excellence award at KPU, Dr. Jhangiani serves as the Senior Open Education Advocacy & Research Fellow with BCcampus, an Associate Editor of Psychology Learning and Teaching, and a faculty workshop facilitator with the Open Textbook Network. Along with the other members of the STP ECP committee, he recently co-edited the e-book A Compendium of Scales for Use in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning. His forthcoming book is titled Open: The Philosophy and Practices that are Revolutionizing Education and Science (Ubiquity Press).

E-xcellence in Teaching Essay: In Pursuit of Teaching Outcroppings: Engaging Students with Emotionally Involving Current Events

(Past member) — Wed, 18 Jan 2017 18:35:12 GMT

In Pursuit of Teaching Outcroppings:

Engaging Students with Emotionally Involving Current Events

Christie Cathey

Ozarks Technical Community College

Most of us can likely remember the one experience that caused us to first fall in love with psychology and made us think, “This is the stuff I want to do forever.” For me, that experience happened 21 years ago this spring, when I took Ralph McKenna’s Advanced Social Psychology class at Hendrix College. The thing about that class that really hooked me on the discipline was how enjoyable the research process became for me. Dr. McKenna encouraged original, creative research designs (he would have nothing to do with canned research projects) and our class meetings were these ridiculously fun and engaging brainstorming sessions.

Dr. McKenna taught us to look to the world around us for unique opportunities to examine human social behavior, encouraging us to be on the constant lookout for “research outcroppings.” This term, originally coined by Webb, Campbell, Schwartz, Sechrest, and Grove (1981), is a really nice metaphor. Just as geologic outcroppings, like highways cut through hillsides, allow us to observe aspects of Earth’s strata that would normally remain hidden from view, a research outcropping results when an atypical event in the world exposes normally hidden aspects of human behavior. For example, the semester I was enrolled in Advanced Social Psychology happened to coincide with the LA riots (sparked by the acquittal of three police officers in the Rodney King case). I remember my classmates and I excitedly considering the possible new vantage points into aspects of social thought and behavior this atypical event may have opened up.

I’ve always been a fan of this outcropping metaphor, and now, as a teacher of psychology, I like to use what I refer to as “teaching outcroppings.” These are unexpected, or infrequent events that are inherently involving for students, and that give us an opportunity to truly engage students by helping them see the immediate application of course concepts to the world around them. Sometimes these teaching outcroppings are difficult to spot, but other times, they appear without effort.

Early last September an unexpected (but in hindsight, obvious), outcropping revealed itself. I had my Social Psychology class planned out for the entire fall semester and had no intention of making changes. However, one morning, I happened to overhear a campaign ad for a local election playing in the next room, and it really ticked me off. The ad’s message was in direct opposition to my own values, and it so enraged me that I wondered how I would survive eight more weeks of listening to that garbage. I then had one of those “when life give you lemons…” realizations, and it occurred to me what a potentially rich teaching outcropping the 2012 election season might be. I knew then that I needed to quickly plan a new project for my Social Psychology class to take advantage of this fleeting opportunity.

The election season provided the perfect teaching outcropping for four distinct reasons. First, as we all know, the 2012 elections were particularly contentious and emotionally laden. I knew that if I could find a good way to get students to relate course concepts to the elections, their existing emotional investment in the elections might translate into heightened engagement in the course. Second, the sheer relentless and omnipresent nature of the persuasive attempts in the media in those final months of the election meant that students couldn’t escape them and would be forced to think about social psychological concepts between class sessions. Third, my class was composed of students with diverse political attitudes, and I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to have them work together in small groups to experience diversity and to practice civility. Fourth, it would give them a chance to develop an important research skill: the ability to examine emotionally laden social topics in as unbiased a manner as possible.

Two weeks later, just as we began our coverage of persuasion in my Social Psychology class, I told my students that they would be working in groups to analyze persuasive tactics used in currently running political television advertisements. Then, in my most obnoxious infomercial voice, I added, “But wait…there’s more!” and announced that they would also be writing and producing political ads of their own, and that on Election Day they would present and discuss their ads for the class. I knew I was onto something good when a 64-year-old student in the front row immediately exclaimed, “Oh! This is going to be fun!”

Over the next five weeks, the five groups of four students each met frequently outside of class. First, they selected two ads from opponents in the same local, state, or national election and then pinpointed the specific persuasive tactics they believed the campaign teams were using in those ads. While working on their analyses of existing ads, the groups also worked together to conceive of a fictitious political candidate, and to invent details about that candidate’s life and campaign. I gave students the option of inventing either a third candidate for the same campaign they’d selected for the first part of the assignment or a candidate in an entirely different campaign. Students then chose specific persuasive tactics we had covered in class and used those to produce their own 30-second ad. I realized that not all students would have video production skills, so I gave them the option of creating either a television or radio ad and told them they even could act out their ad if they really feared technology. Alas, I underestimated students’ technological adeptness, as no groups went with the “Shakespearean option.”

On Election Day, I came to class armed with patriotic-themed cupcakes to help calm students’ public speaking jitters, and we began the 15-minute presentations. Each group first showed videos of the two current ads they’d selected and presented their analyses of the intended persuasive goal and the effectiveness of each. They then provided details about their fictitious candidate (e.g., age, gender, political affiliation), and about their candidate’s campaign (e.g., Was it early or late in the campaign? Was the candidate ahead or behind according to polls?), and played their original ad for the class. Finally, the group gave an in-depth analysis of their original ad, including a discussion of the intended audience, the ad’s overall goal, and at least one persuasive tactic employed in the ad.

Although I was initially nervous about trying out a new, potentially risky project that involved students working closely in groups for an extended period of time, I believe this project was the most successful (and certainly the most fun) I’ve ever used. The level of work all groups put into the project far exceeded my expectations. Their analysis of existing ads was sophisticated and thoughtful, and their original ads were creative and, in some cases, enormously entertaining and humorous. What’s more, the class really loved the project, and despite the fact that several groups were comprised of members on opposite polar ends of the political spectrum, I am happy to report that not only were there no thrown punches, but that I witnessed true teamwork, high levels of civility, and the formation of strong bonds within groups of very diverse students. Finally, the class as a whole was the most engaged and excited about learning I’ve experienced in my 15 years of teaching Social Psychology. Of course, I can’t be certain that this was a result of the election project and its usefulness as a teaching outcropping, but I strongly suspect that it was.

This project reinforced my belief in the value of seeking out and exploiting teaching outcroppings. I fully intend to make use of the 2016 election outcropping, but in the meantime, I have amped up my intentional search for others. This semester, for example, I simply asked students which current events most grab their attention. The resounding answer was the debate surrounding gun control in the U.S., so I’m building an assignment that takes advantage of students’ high emotional involvement in that issue. Regardless of the courses we teach, I believe we can all make use of teaching outcroppings; we must only be insightful enough to recognize them when they occur and flexible enough to change our plans in order to take advantage of them. By recognizing these fleeting events in the world, we can develop creative coursework that grabs and holds students’ attention, and emotionally involves them in their studies. By doing this, we can not only better engage our students, but, in some cases, we can truly transform a class.

References and Suggested Readings

McKenna, R. J. (1995). The Undergraduate researcher’s handbook: Creative experimentation in social psychology. Boston: Allyn and Bacon.

Webb, E. J., Campbell, D.T., Schwartz, R. D., Sechrest, L. & Grove, J. B. (1981). Nonreactive measures in the social sciences (2^nd ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.

Christie Cathey received her B.A from Hendrix College and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Social Psychology from the University of Connecticut. After teaching for nine years at Missouri Southern State University in Joplin, where she was an Associate Professor, she is now Lead Instructor for Introduction to Psychology at Ozarks Technical Community College in Springfield, Missouri. She was a visiting professor at Tsinghua University in Beijing, China in 2009, and her research interests focus on an application of the Confucian ethical ideal, ren, to pedagogical practices. She’s passionate about mentoring undergraduate researchers and was an Associate Editor for the Journal of Psychological Inquiry, a student research journal, for six years.

From Passive Learner to Active Participant: Examining the Effectiveness of Inter-Teaching

(Past member) — Mon, 02 Jan 2017 22:58:44 GMT

From Passive Learner to Active Participant:
Examining the Effectiveness of Inter-Teaching

Peter Frost, PhD Southern New Hampshire University

            Typically, inter-teaching requires that random pairs of students answer questions involving application, synthesis and/or critical thinking by teaching each other during a portion of class (Boyce & Hineline, 2002; Saville, et al., 2011). Generally, the professor sets up questions for each inter-teaching session. Students are expected to prepare answers to all questions since they usually don’t know which question will be used during a particular inter-teaching session. During each inter-teaching session, students are randomly assigned to dyads or triads and spend part (as in our approach) or all of class to discuss the question and write-up a response. The professor or student helpers/coaches observe the groups to help correct any misconceptions, or help answer questions through Socratic dialogue. Write-ups of each group’s responses are collected, graded, and typically handed back by the next class meeting. Some versions of inter-teaching also include a peer review process of some sort. Many versions of inter-teaching exist; we describe our version in the Methods section.
            Regardless of the variation used, inter-teaching is intended to encourage students to take ownership of their learning since they are responsible for contributing to their peer partnership and knowing the material well enough to teach it. The peer review process places additional pressure on students to know information ahead of class.
            The version of inter-teaching we used, adopted with some modification from Carroll (2011), also included the use of online practice quizzes (described in more detail in the Methods section). We designed the quizzes to ensure students knew basic and fundamental concepts ahead of each inter-teaching session, using an approach developed by Daniel and Broida (2004) described below.
             Past studies have shown that courses with inter-teaching lead to higher exam scores (Saville, et al., 2011) and greater long-term recognition memory of course concepts (Saville, Bureau, Eckenrode, Fullerton, Herbert, Maley, Porter, & Zombakis, 2014) than traditional lecture courses. We suspected that inter-teaching would facilitate intrinsic motivation. To test this, we examined whether students using inter-teaching in a section of Cognitive Psychology would find their section more stimulating and worthwhile compared to students using a traditional lecture approach in another section of Cognitive Psychology. As with past studies, we also suspected that students in the inter-teaching section would show evidence for greater learning and retention of course concepts.

Method

Participants
            We compared two sections of Cognitive Psychology offered during the Fall 2014 semester. One section (n = 22) was randomly assigned to implement inter-teaching while a second (n = 24) implemented a lecture-based course. Both courses were taught by the same professor, covered the same content, and included the same lecture format.

Materials and Procedures
            We provided a study guide to the inter-teaching section at the beginning of the semester. A set of between two and five questions was shown for each of seven inter-teaching sessions that were conducted throughout the semester. We informed students that they had to prepare for all of the questions for each session since they would not know which question would be part of an inter-teaching session. Inter-teaching questions were designed to encourage thought, application, or synthesis.
            Each inter-teaching session ran at the beginning of class for about 15 to 30 minutes, depending on the difficulty of the question. We paired students randomly, and they all received the same question. If the students had questions during the session, the teacher would use Socratic dialogue to help prompt an answer (the answer was never provided). Student pairs handed in a written response to the question based on their discussion.
            We gave the students feedback about their written response by the next class. They were also asked to fill out a peer review assessment survey made available on Blackboard.
            Students in the inter-teaching section also took an online practice quiz designed to help them master the facts needed for the inter-teaching sessions. The parameters of our online practice quizzes (based largely on the approach described by Daniel and Broida, 2004) were as follows:

A large number of multiple-choice items were included (40 – 100).
Students could re-take each quiz as often as they wanted until the due date. The highest grade achieved was recorded.
Questions were scrambled, as were answer choices.
Once logged in, students had to complete the quiz.
The quiz was timed.
Students could view only one question at a time.
Feedback was restricted to ‘correct’ or ‘incorrect’ for each item.

A Likert-like Scale survey was given at the end of the semester to assess student motivation for each section of Cognitive Psychology. The questions took on the form as follows:

Did you find that time in class was worthwhile (circle one)?

Not at all 0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80% 90% 100% Absolutely

Results

Although no main effects occurred for Type of Course (Inter-Teaching versus Traditional) nor GPA (upper versus lower GPAs), ps > .05, there was a statistically significant Type of Class by GPA interaction, F(1, 42) = 4.23, p = .046. Inter-teaching appears to have improved the test scores of students in the lower 50^th percentile, but not students in the upper 50^th percentile.
Across all questions about student engagement, average Likert-like scale responses associated with inter-teaching were higher than that for standard courses. Participants found that time in class was more worthwhile in the inter-teaching course (M = 82.02, SD = 5.23) than the standard course (M = 55.45, SD = 9.04). The inter-teaching course was found to be more intellectually stimulating (M = 76.25, SD = 7.00) than the standard course (M = 61.90, SD = 9.61). Participants also indicated wanting to learn more in the inter-teaching course (M = 78.66, SD = 10.01) than in the standard course (M = 65.72, SD = 11.63). We found that the average overall score associated with the student engagement survey was higher for inter-teaching than for the lecture section, t (44) = 15.52, p = .02. Attendance was higher for IT than that for the lecture section (94% attendance on average for IT and 86% attendance for a control group).

Discussion

            Our findings replicate other studies showing that inter-teaching methods and online practice quizzes can help improve exam scores (Daniel & Broida, 2004; Saville, et al., 2011; Saville, et al., 2014), but our results suggest the benefit is exclusive to students with lower GPAs. Inter-teaching did not improve test scores for higher-performing students, perhaps because their scores were closer to ceiling from the start of the semester.
            As predicted by our hypothesis, inter-teaching led to evidence of enhanced intrinsic motivation as shown by higher ratings (relative to an exclusively lecture-based course) associated with viewing the course as worthwhile and intellectually stimulating, rating the instructional method as helpful, and wanting to learn more. Moreover, inter-teaching was also associated with greater attendance.
            There are many variants of the inter-teaching method. For example, peer evaluation can either be figured into the grade or not (we did not include ratings in peer evaluations as part of the grade); some teachers choose to lend significant time to inter-teaching activities (we only had seven inter-teaching sessions over the semester between 15 and 30 minutes each). Inter-teaching is versatile enough to be adapted to course needs.
            Our inter-teaching approach had several potentially beneficial aspects, but a limitation of our study is that we did not determine the extent to which the different aspects benefited learning and motivation. Future research should analyze how different aspects and variations contribute to the effectiveness of the inter-teaching method. Our findings show that the effectiveness of inter-teaching, both with regard to improving academic performance for lower-performing students and facilitating motivation in all students, makes further research into what makes this method effective worthwhile.

References

Boyce, T. E., & Hineline, P. N. (2002). Interteaching: A strategy for enhancing the user-friendliness of behavioral arrangements in the college classroom. The Behavior Analyst, 25, 215–226.

Carroll, D. (2011, October). Development, application and evaluation of an 'inter-teaching' approach to learning. Paper presented at the meeting of the Northeast Conference for Teachers of Psychology, Fairfield, CT.

Daniel, D.B, & Broida, J. (2004). Using web-based quizzing to improve exam performance: Lessons learned. Teaching of Psychology, 31(3), 207-208.

Saville, B.K., Bureau, A., Eckenrode, C., Fullerton, A., Herbert, R., Maley, M., Porter, A. & Zombakis, J. (2014). Interteaching and lecture: A comparison of long-term recognition memory. Teaching of Psychology, 41(4), 325-329. DOI: 10.1177/0098628314549704

Saville, B. K., Lambert, T., & Robertson, S. (2011). Interteaching: Bringing behavioral education into the 21st century. The Psychological Record, 61, 153–165.

Peter Frost (Ph.D., Baylor University) is Professor of Psychology at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) and a Steering Committee member of the New England Psychological Association. He has been a recipient of the SNHU Excellence in Teaching Award and the SNHU President’s Merit Award. He is a firm believer that undergraduate Psychology majors should collaborate with faculty on original research projects. His current projects with students focus on the effects of using mobile devices on various aspects of higher cognition. Other studies have explored how personality relates to susceptibility to false memory and how faulty reasoning can alter autobiographical memory.

Evaluating Alternative Reality Games for Introductory Psychology

(Past member) — Fri, 16 Dec 2016 00:11:43 GMT

Evaluating Alternative Reality Games

for Introductory Psychology

J. Mark Cleaveland and Rachel Abril

Vassar College

Game-based learning refers to the use of games in pedagogy. We typically use game-based learning to increase a learner’s “engagement,” however operationalized, with a problem or content area. The game in question might explicitly model a particular set of contingencies or do so implicitly. For example, in the board game, “Freedom: The underground railroad,” players take on the roles of abolitionists who are attempting to aid slaves on their passage to freedom. In doing so, players interact with cards that detail historical events and personages (see Cleaveland, 2014). Conversely, a game such as “Mastermind” is not explicitly about scientific reasoning, but we can use it to teach aspects of the scientific method implicitly, and then, with discussion or targeted responding, bring out these points explicitly (see Strom and Barolo, 2011). Another form of game-based learning is given by the “Reacting to the Past” consortium begun by Mark Carnes (see Carnes, 2014). In these sometimes semester-length games, students role-play the personages and debates of particular historical periods. Regardless of the specifics however, a fundamental goal of all instances of game-based learning is to re-contextualize traditional pedagogy in creative ways. Games or texts are no longer passive objects, but repositories of opportunities. “Mastermind” is no longer a collection of pegs and a board, but also a physical metaphor for the scientific method. A speech of Demosthenes is no longer only something to learn for a test, but also potential leverage for a team in an upcoming roleplaying debate. In other words, the best examples of game-based learning can create a pedagogical narrative that naturally blurs the distinction between what happens in the classroom and the student’s day-to-day life.

In April of 2015, we experimented with game-based learning in an Introductory Psychology class at Vassar College. Specifically, we designed and ran an “alternate reality game,” or ARG, that we called “Backtrack.” The story, thematically centered on memory and used material covered in earlier lectures. Participation in its narrative was offered as an extra credit opportunity. Students who signed up for the game received an email with a request for help from one of the characters, and by replying to this email began a narrative journey in which their knowledge of memory-related concepts would be highlighted. Before going into the details of the game, itself, we’d like to explain why we attempted this experiment, and what we mean by “alternate reality game.”

Introductory Psychology is taught as a single semester survey course at Vassar College. Typical classes are limited to 30 students and meet for approximately 2.5 hours per week across the semester. We are fortunate in that small classroom sizes allow for more in-class flexibility than is typical of many academic institutions. Nonetheless, the overwhelming amount of content in an Introductory Psychology course, especially if taught in a single semester, places severe constraints on pedagogy. By necessity, class-time must focus primarily on the systematization of “facts” that will tend, of course, to appear on tests. As a skill, systematization has its place, however what psychologists actually do is use this systematization in the service of open-ended exploration, constrained by methodology. It is this latter activity–open-ended exploration with the intent of uncovering heretofore unnoticed contingencies–that is missing from many Introductory Psychology survey courses. Our goal therefore, was to see if we could come up with an activity that explicitly targeted and reinforced the creative detective work that undergirds our field. For this reason we turned to ARGs.

Alternate Reality Games (or ARGs) are games that are based around a single, cohesive narrative. The narrative is constructed by an individual or a group of so-called “puppet masters,” and then then broken into interactive elements that make use of a variety of media. For example, a story might unfold through texts, images, audio, video, or even real-life interaction. Players uncover the narrative through interaction and investigation, and can even have an impact on the outcome of various in-game events. Given that the narrative of an ARG is “found” more than it is encountered, the lines between reality and fiction tend to blur in this narrative medium. Some ARGs go so far as never overtly to acknowledge the events as being part of a game. Both players and the game makers are expected to behave as though everything that happens in the game is true.

The blurring of reality that lies at the center of an ARG narrative creates a uniquely immersive experience. Players are led to believe that every action that they make in the game is significant, that they have a direct impact on the events that transpire and, perhaps most importantly, that they are forming real relationships with the characters that they interact with in the narrative. This illusion creates a level of engagement that may be unmatched by any other kind of game, and can offer a special benefit to education. Using an ARG as a teaching tool can provide students with “real world” applications of psychological concepts. Interaction with concepts from class outside of a classroom setting requires students to draw on their knowledge of course material to puzzle out the story without feeling like they are being formally tested. The hope is that this will provide a stronger connection to the source material, and reinforce the concepts in the minds of the players.

We ran “Backtrack,” our own ARG, in April 2015. Because our game was only meant to cover one section of material (i.e., lectures specifically centered on memory), we decided that the game would last five days. Ultimately we extended this time frame to a week because the players had difficulty determining what they were supposed to do. The general plot was as follows. It began with a message to the players from a fellow student identifying herself as “K.” This person claimed that her friend, “J,” was having memory problems, but that he refused to believe her. “K” asked the students to validate her concerns by directing them to a recording of a memory test that “J” had taken (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XR4EmyrU-Us). Players were required to characterize “J’s” memory deficiencies before “J” contacted them via Skype. This interaction led the students to an online journal of J’s that was filled with puzzles, coded sections, and general information that provided background on “J.” For example, a linked paged entitled “CBT” led to a description of a simple cognitive behavioral technique. By figuring out how to work through the journal, the players ultimately came to a confession that “J” had fatally struck a dog with his car and disposed of the body. The players then learned that the owner of the dog, a daughter of a family friend, had disappeared in the search for her dog, and that “J” blamed himself for her disappearance. The game concluded with the players determining that “K” was actually encouraging some of J’s memory problems (e.g., via attempts to plant false memories) in a misguided attempt to help her friend through a difficult time. The game concluded with an in-person meetup with “K,” and a scavenger hunt to locate an object that would hopefully aid in the retrieval of some of J’s lost memories.

The participating students were asked to fill out a questionnaire at the conclusion of the narrative, so that we could obtain a qualitative sense of their experience. From this questionnaire we learned that students overwhelmingly enjoyed the collaboration with their fellow students that the ARG afforded. Students also appreciated the central mystery of the narrative and interactions with the story characters. All reported at least some explicit awareness of course concepts embedded in the narrative. After the game had concluded, one student even sent a follow up email to “comfort” one of the characters. For these reasons, we feel that an ARG provides an interesting pedagogical tool that deserves further exploration. That said, our recommendation of this tool comes with certain caveats.

First, workload. An ARG is not an undertaking that can be put together at the last minute. Creating as much of the material in advance as possible is vital. Whether this entails outlining character interactions to avoid being sidetracked in a chatroom, drafting content to appear in an email or blog post, or creating web pages will vary depending on what media are being used to present the ARG. In most cases, ARGs contain at least one central website and one point of interaction with characters and players. For “Backtrack,” we opted to use a single static website, and contacted the players through email, Skype, text messages, and one in-person character meeting. All of the content for the website was finished and uploaded before the game began. This proved to be immensely helpful once the game itself was underway, because it allowed the puppet master to focus on guiding the players through the narrative itself rather than having to worry about producing new content. For longer games, producing all content may not be as feasible, but at the very least an outline of the planned events and core concepts to which they’re tied should be created before the game is launched.

Furthermore, the preparatory workload in our case was matched by the work required of the students. “Backtrack” only lasted for a week but still had to tell a complete narrative and incorporate an assortment of pre-determined course concepts. For this reason, the workload required of students was high, and multiple participants noted this in their feedback. One potential remedy would be to have the game last for a longer period of time to allow students to play once they have dealt with their other commitments. Players also noted that they felt that course material should have been more vital to the advancement through the story rather than utilizing classic ARG ciphers. Several of them mentioned the puzzle that required the players to teach the characters psychological concepts as a memorable instance of the course material being used, indicating that puzzles of this nature would be a wise choice for anyone considering making an educational ARG in the future. Such specificity of puzzles, of course, only serves to increase the potential workload and creative requirements on the part of the game makers.

Finally, it should be pointed out that some students found the engagement that is central to ARGs to be difficult. As mentioned above, our players had difficulty at the beginning of the story in determining how to play the game. We eventually used both character prompting and feedback from the instructor to teach the students how to engage with the story. This need to teach the students how to engage via self-generated exploration was interesting and perhaps unsurprising given how little it is emphasized in most Intro Psychology courses. Our hope, moving forward, is to further amplify this element of the ARG experience, while working to further embody psychological skills and concepts in the narrative, itself.

References

Cleaveland (2014).http://boardgamegeek.com/thread/1219031/ professors-playing-games-freedom-underground-railr

Carnes, M. (2014). Minds on Fire, Harvard University Press: Cambridge, MA.

Strom & Barolo (2011). Using the game of Mastermind to teach, practice, and discuss scientific reasoning skills. PLOS Biology. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.1000578.

J. Mark Cleaveland is an associate professor in Vassar College's Psychological Science department and Neuroscience and Behavior program. At Vassar he teaches courses in the areas of comparative psychology, learning, and introductory psychology. An inveterate gamer, he has long possessed an interest in how games have been used in behavioral modeling and how they might inspire pedagogical frameworks.

Rachel Abril graduated from Vassar College in 2015 with a Bachelor's of Arts degree in Psychology. She has long been interested in immersive fiction, and has been an active ARG player and designer since early 2010. Backtrack was part of an independent study at Vassar, and creating the website for this project inspired her to continue her studies. She is currently pursuing an accelerated Bachelors/Masters degree in Graphic Information Technology at Arizona State University.

Undergraduate Psychology Students Participating in Professional Conferences

(Past member) — Tue, 06 Dec 2016 20:07:09 GMT

Undergraduate Psychology Students Participating in Professional Conferences

Ronald G. Shapiro, Ph. D.

Barbara Fritts, Ph. D.

Attending a regional professional conference such as the Eastern Psychological Association (EPA) or the Midwestern Psychological Association (MPA) Annual Meeting can be one of the highlights of a psychology student’s undergraduate experience. Similarly, organizing a conference for students from multiple colleges and universities, as well as for professionals outside of academia, can provide students with valuable experiences as event organizers, presenters and attendees. Thus, every effort should be made to afford each student the opportunity to participate on at least two occasions. Ideally, capstone projects should be aligned with conference proposal dates so that students completing high quality capstone projects will have an opportunity to present their work to a broad audience. Why should each student have the opportunity to participate?

For students likely to pursue an advanced degree, the convention experience provides:

An introduction to what will be a highlight of their entire career—doing and sharing research.
Insights on what they might want to study in graduate school.
Learning how to navigate conferences prior to attending graduate school.
An opportunity to present their work and possibly obtain feedback.
Great networking opportunities to meet faculty and graduate students at schools they may wish to attend.
Opportunities to explore career opportunities outside of academia.
Opportunities to have conversations with professionals in the student's desired field—these professionals may be willing to provide guidance and mentoring.
Resume/CV building.
An opportunity to determine that they do not want to pursue graduate studies in psychology, thereby saving themselves (and graduate faculty) a costly, non-productive experience.

For students not likely to pursue an advanced degree, the convention experience provides:

A culminating and great summary of their undergraduate years.
An opportunity to practice the professional skills, which we tell students they will learn as a psychology major regardless of their career choice, but often do not have the opportunity to practice within their own university psychology department.
Exposure to conferences, conventions and trade shows, which will be very valuable to them if they chose a professional career.
An opportunity to network and possibly develop friendships, which may help to land great professional jobs.
An opportunity to determine that they want to make a career change and pursue an advanced degree, but possibly in a specialization that they did not become familiar with at their home college.

There are also numerous advantages for the university. Encouraging student participation in professional conferences ought to provide the university with a competitive advantage in recruiting potential students. Conference photos may be featured in recruiting materials.

Not all undergraduate students will have an opportunity to participate in professional conferences as undergraduate students. Neither of the authors did. Barbara chose to participate after completing her undergraduate degree before applying to graduate school. She later wrote:

The value of that first convention could best be summarized for me as "initiative paying off". My undergraduate institution did not have a big research lab and so I had no opportunities to attend APA as a student prior to graduate school. Unlike most of my counterparts, my presence at my first convention was completely self-motivated. I was not third presenter on a poster that my undergraduate research group had put together, for example. I wasn't with an advisor or program. It was just me. Twenty-two year old, Bachelors in Psychology, naive, me. I saved my money, planned a trip to Washington DC because my aunt and uncle lived there and I could stay with them, navigated the public transportation system in a city I did not know, and made the most out of that convention because I had a dream of getting my PhD in psychology I and wanted to make it come true. Akin to the initiative that brought me to the convention in the first place, I took risks and talked to as many people as I could and gathered as many email addresses as I could. I did not let the fact that I was alone stop me. I am convinced that it was this practice in self-motivation which propelled me into becoming a desirable doctoral student and it was what helped me to get into graduate school.

While Barbara’s story is motivating, her undergraduate program could have made life easier for her. If her program had included attending a professional conference in their curriculum, she would have been guided in this endeavor by her undergraduate faculty and may have had the experience and contacts she needed for acceptance into graduate school sooner.

Tips for Optimizing Conference Participation

The remainder of this article is focused around optimizing the conference experience for the undergraduate student. It is written to the student, so that faculty may simply forward it on to their students without the need to rewrite.

One of the primary purposes of attending a professional conference (whether presenting or not) is networking with other students and professionals. Prepare for these networking opportunities at least three months before the conference by considering the following:

Order business cards. The cards should look professional and contain name, professional title (could be Psychology Club President, Undergraduate Student, or whatever is most appropriate), University, email, phone, and mailing address. Use contact information which will remain current for many years.
If you plan to visit book or other exhibitors at your conference consider bringing some pre-addressed labels or an address stamp to the conference so that you can sign up for their mailing lists without needing to take the time to write your name and address.
Listen to your voicemail message. Does it sound professional? If not, update it. If you do not have one set one up. Voice rather than texting is the professional way to communicate.
Establish a LinkedIn profile and connect with a number of professionals.
Check your Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, etc. accounts. Is there anything visible you would not want a future employer or graduate school to see? If so, adjust accordingly. Be aware of what the pages of your online friends may indicate about you. Consider trimming friends or adjusting your privacy settings, but do not become invisible. Future employers may be suspicious of a candidate who does not have social media presence. Encourage friends whose pages are not professional looking to upgrade their pages. As a last resort, consider the possible consequence of being connected to people with unprofessional pages and consider disconnecting from them.
Assume that your prospective employers or graduate school advisors (or their graduate student assistants) will Google you. Do your own internet searches of your name and look for postings which you may have made as a high school student. Do they look professional? If not, adjust accordingly.
Prepare an “elevator” speech, a one to two minute summary which tells the listener about your background and why you would like to connect with them. Whenever possible, be sure your speech indicates why it will be of benefit the listener to connect with you. Practice this speech.
Practice having professional conversations with students and faculty at your school.
Register early for early registration discounts and shop for great hotel rates near your conference.
Investigate scholarship or other funding opportunities for students attending conferences from your college or university.
Prepare a resume (or Curriculum Vita) that ROARs (is Results Oriented And Relevant)
- Results Oriented: For every job, major volunteer experience, and academic experience, be sure to explain your contributions in a way that really excites the reader.
- Relevant: Prepare a statement which goes right under your name at the top of the resume that links the needs of a potential employer (or graduate school advisor) with your Results Oriented accomplishments. This should hook the reader.
Be certain that your resume (or CV) stands apart from any you will find in a resume book. If you are applying for graduate school immediately after graduation ask an advisor or faculty member give you feedback. If you will be applying for jobs outside of academia please be sure to have a recruiter, manager who hires professionals or equivalent business professional review your resume.
If you are considering many different career options, it is fine to have multiple versions of your resume/CV rather than a one size fits none version.
Volunteer to help out. Volunteering to help out may provide you with a great opportunity to network. If you have the opportunity, consider the following:
- Distribute name badges to the dignitaries attending a conference. You will be positioned to meet many, and hopefully speak with some. This may be a highlight of your undergraduate years.
- Volunteer to run the projection equipment at a workshop that you are interested in. You will have the opportunity to attend the workshop for free and speak with the presenters. You never know where this opportunity may lead.
- Do not do behind the scenes volunteer work such as preparing registration packets while at the conference unless it is in your home town. While volunteers normally receive reduced or free conference registration, when one considers the total cost of attending a conference (travel, hotel, registration fee, food, etc.), even with the registration fee waiver you are probably paying to volunteer, so be sure that you are benefiting, not just providing a service.
Discuss appropriate dress with people who have been to the conference before. Generally business dress is appropriate, but business casual may be appropriate, too.
Be sure to bring writing utensils and paper, your resume and business cards as well as electronic devices you may chose to use to make notes.
Review the conference program online and research the work and background of professionals you're interested in before the conference. This will help with conversations and give you the opportunity to formulate your questions to them ahead of time.

At the professional conference:

If you are presenting or planning to attend a really important session, be sure you know where the session will be and how to get there on time, even if the elevators are over packed.
Try to meet people everywhere you go. Talk to people while waiting for an elevator, if you arrive early at a session, or if you are sharing transportation.
Have dinner (or go on a side tour) with people you do not know. You will have plenty of opportunity to network with your friends at school. Try to meet and get to know people you do not already know at conferences.
Trade business cards with people you meet. Make notes on the back of each card to help you remember the people. If your new acquaintances are not as prepared as you are and do not have business cards, record their information (perhaps in your phone, along with a note indicating why they are relevant to you) so you can still keep in touch.
Take photos
If you are particularly interested in a presentation, tell the presenter. Ask questions. Trade contact information. You never know where these contacts may lead.
If you are comfortable being on stage, participate as an on-stage volunteer at a demonstration during a program. You will learn more than just sitting in the audience, hopefully have fun, and possibly even obtain a job offer. No kidding, some of Ron’s on-stage participants in his activity based programs have gotten job offers from members of the audience who liked their performance. Others have established long lasting professional relationships. For example, Barbara and Dr. Margarita Posada Cossuto (our external reviewer) met Ron when they participated in his programs at a psychology convention.
Always be thinking about how you might work with new colleagues in the future. Not all of these ideas will work out, but hopefully many will.

After the conference:

Connect with your new friends on social media, particularly LinkedIn. Send your new friends an email.
Follow up with an email to the presenters whose work interested you the most. Share your ideas with them.
Write (and photo illustrate) an article on your conference participation for your university
If you’ve done your job right, you may still be in touch with some of your new conference friends 10, 20, 30 or more years after the conference.

Authors’ Note: We would like to thank Industrial Consultant Dr. Margarita Posada Cossuto for helpful comments.

Ronald G. Shapiro is a Speaker and Consultant in Career Development, Leadership Development, Learning, and Human Factors/Ergonomics. His recent presentations at professional conferences and academic institutions focus on 1) careers and 2) game show style programs to help participants and organizations become safer, more productive and better communicators. Ron received his PhD and MA from Ohio State University and his BA from the University of Rochester. He is a Fellow in the American Psychological Association (APA), the Eastern Psychological Association, and the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society (HFES) and has served as President of APA Division 21 and Secretary-Treasurer of HFES. . He spent most of his career as a technical employee, corporate staff member, and manager in IBM in both Human Factors/Ergonomics and Human Resources/Learning. He has also taught psychology at community colleges, colleges and universities.

Dr. Barbara Fritts is a licensed clinical psychologist who works in private practice at Walpole Behavioral Healthcare in Walpole, Massachusetts. She received her Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology in 2012 from the University of Missouri-Kansas City, following a B.A. in Psychology, emphasis in Women's Studies, from Elmira College in 2003. Her areas of clinical specialty include perinatal and postpartum mental health, LGBTQ issues, and trauma and abuse. Dr. Fritts contributes to OnTrend magazine and values writing as her voice for teaching and mentoring, helping people understand and have compassion for one another, and advocating for those who are not able to advocate for themselves.