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PREPARING TO TEACH

 

Good teaching facilitates students in constructing their own knowledge.
Planning learning objectives/outcomes in advance strives to map this process out in advance.

 

TOPIC 2:   Course design:  content & structure


Designed by Elena Berman
 

  A Model for Instructional Design  [pdf]

Content  Analysis: 

- decide on content & skills to be acquired
- determine desired learning outcomes
       (i.e. how students will demonstrate
       they have learned content, acquired skills) 
- write instructional objectives to achieve the
       desired outcomes

Learner Analysis:

- assess need for multiple learning styles
   (know your audience)
- determine cognitive skills needed for
    different levels of "thinking
tasks"

Instructional Strategies:

- develop learning activities using "task prompts"
  that address content at appropriate skill levels
- determine which modes of instruction delivery
  are best suited to task


Put it all together into a Course Plan:

-define & limit content (connect w/ texts)
- determine logical arrangement for course content
- construct course schedule (topics, assignments,
    test dates or as much as can be determined in
    advance -- build in flexibility)

 

Also:  Think about how you will communicate the course plan and its logic to your students  (concept map, diagram, class explanation or discussion, etc.)

 

ASSIGNMENT 

  • Read:   

    Lynch, C.L. Wolcott, S.K.(2001)   Helping Your Students Develop Critical Thinking Skills [pdf]   

    Tools for Teaching (2nd ed ):  Chapter 1 Designing or Revising a Course  
      

    Decide on a course (or course module) you intend to use as the basis for this and subsequent assignments in this class.
     

  • Write a draft of a one-paragraph description of your course or module, (i.e., a piece that might appear in the course description section of a syllabus or at the beginning of a class learning activity.)

  • Make a list of the main content (topics) you want to cover in your course or course learning module

  • Write three to five (3-5) instructional  objectives for the course or course module you've selected.  NOTE:  for our purposes, the terms "instructional objectives," "learning objectives," and "learning outcomes" will be used interchangeablly, and mean a statment of what learners will be able to do, or perform, to be considered competent after the instruction takes place. Help on writing objectives can be found under Useful Background Reading below:  

Be prepared to share your assignment with the rest of the class on Wed Jan 26th.

___________________________________________________________________

USEFUL BACKGROUND READING TO ASSIST YOU IN COMPLETING THE ASSIGNMENT:


Tools for Teaching (2nd ed ):  Chapter 1 Designing or Revising a Course

Course design and planning

 

- Read “Designing a Course” from excellent Course Design Site of The Teaching Center of Washington University of St. Louis.   https://teachingcenter.wustl.edu/resources/course-design/

-  See also Washington University of St. Louis's (rather ambitious!) "Planning a Course Timeline":
             https://teachingcenter.wustl.edu/resources/course-design/course-planning-timeline/

Desired Outcomes

- Visit and browse the UA University-Wide General Education Committee’s webpage on Expected Outcomes for General Education courses: http://gened.arizona.edu/faculty/expected-outcomes

Writing Learning Objectives

- See the following information on Developing Course Objectives from the Illinois Online Network

- See  “Writing Objectives Using Bloom's Taxonomy” from UNC Charlotte's Center for Teaching and Learning
(has very useful charts with keywords and sample wording)

Learner Analysis

Learning Styles 
 
(Optional: For those who want to learn more about various theories on how students learn.  For insights on your own learning style,complete the assessments under Topic 1b if you haven't done so already)
 

Review:   Felder, R.M. Matters of Style  [pdf]
also at:
http://www.ncsu.edu/felder-public/Papers/LS-Prism.htm

Explore:  more about learning styles from Richard Felder and his collaborators, including the Index of Learning Styles (ILS) and how the Myers-Briggs Indicator types relate to teaching and learning: More on cognitive skills & learning styles

Cognitive Skills
  

Explore:  Lynch, C.L. Wolcott, S.K.(2001) 

        Helping Your Students Develop Critical Thinking Skills [pdf]         
        
See also: http://www.wolcottlynch.com/ for more on these authors

Browse: webpages to browse on Bloom's Taxonomy
http://www.edpsycinteractive.org/topics/cognition/bloom.html
                    
          http://www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html
         

 

 

 

Figure 1
Steps for Better Thinking
A Developmental Problem Solving Process
(Lynch & Wolcott, 2001)


 

 


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