1. Interactive Teaching
Preparing Future Faculty Retreat
Christina Petersen, PhD
pete6647@umn.edu

2. It began as a competition!
Univ. of British Columbia website
vs. www.iontrap.umd.edu/
group_members/index.
html
Award-winning professor and
Nobel laureate
Plucky Postdoc

3. Regular Physics Class
Weeks 1-11 Lecture
Interactive
Lecture teaching
Week 12
methods
Force
Week XX Concept
Inventory
L Deslauriers et al. Science

4. Fig. 1 Histogram of student scores for the two sections.
L Deslauriers et al. Science 2011;332:862-864
Published by AAAS

5. Learning is the goal of
teaching
Learning can’t be
measured
Active learning requires
students do something
Choose the “do” wisely

6. Learning is the goal of teaching.

7. How do you know if your students
have learned something?

8. You can only measure what students
do.
• Performance on a quiz or exam
• Essay, report or other writing
• Quality of feedback in discussions
• Facial expressions, body language

9. Three definitions that will aid your
understanding of the rest of this presentation.

10. 1. Learning: Learning is a significant
change in capability, understanding,
knowledge, practices, attitudes or
values.
Write this definition down in your
handout.

11. 2. Active learning: Active learning is
an instructional method that
engages students in the learning
process.
Translate this definition into your
own words and write it down.

12. 3. Classroom assessment techniques:
are mostly simple, non-graded, in-class
activities that gather useful feedback on
the teaching-learning process from all
of your students.
Turn to the person next to you and
discuss your understanding of this
definition.

13. Classroom Assessment #1
1. Turn over your piece of paper with your
definitions.
2. Which of these three definitions do you feel
most comfortable with i.e. feel like you
understand?
A. Learning
B. Active learning
C. Classroom Assessment Techniques

14. Active learning is an instructional method
that engages students in the learning
process.

15. Advantages of active learning for
students.
• Active learning leads to improved retention of
material
• Active learning leads to improved student
thinking and writing
• Active learning leads to better student
attitudes
Summarized from Prince, 2006

16. Advantages of active learning for
teachers.
• Active learning allows instructors to quickly
gain valuable feedback on their students
learning.
• Active learning provides a “break” for
instructors to reflect and recover.
• Active learning can make teaching more
enjoyable.

17. Choose your “do” wisely.

18. Examples of active learning.
1. Discussion
 Large group
 Small group
2. Active Lecturing
 Note sharing
3. Classroom Assessment Techniques
 Sample exam question

19. Examples of active learning.
1. Discussion
 Large group
 Small group
2. Active Lecturing
 Note sharing
3. Classroom Assessment Techniques
 Sample exam question

20. What are the advantages & disadvantages
of a large group discussion?
Advantages:
• Greater diversity of ideas/opinions
• Students can potentially hear from more people
• Allows instructor to pause and take pulse
Disadvantages:
• Easy for students to withdraw
• Challenging for introverted students
• Doesn’t give instructor pulse of all

21. What are the advantages and
disadvantages of small group discussions?
Advantages:
• All students participate
• Reduces feeling of anonymity in large classes
• Students can tutor each other
Disadvantages:
• May take more time
• Students may resist

22. Classroom Assessment #2
When did you feel most engaged with
the discussion material on discussion?
A. During the large group discussion
B. During the small group discussion

23. Examples of active learning.
1. Discussion
 Large group
 Small group
2. Active Lecturing
 Note sharing
3. Classroom Assessment Techniques
 Sample exam question

24. The Bookends Model illustrates how active
learning can be incorporated into a lecture.
Karl Smith

25. Karl Smith

26. Class design template

27. Activity – Identify a portion of your
teaching that you would like to make
more active.

28. Examples of active learning.
1. Discussion
 Large group
 Small group
2. Active Lecturing
 Note sharing
3. Classroom Assessment Techniques
 Sample exam question

29. Classroom assessment techniques are:
mostly simple, non-graded, in-
class activities that gather
useful feedback on the
teaching-learning process
from all of your students.
Classroom Assessment Techniques National Teaching and Learning Forum

30. Skills, processes, and engagement can
be assessed.
• Mastery of concepts or skills
• Course processes like small group work or
your teaching
• Student engagement

31. CATs are useful for faculty.
• Provides feedback in time to make corrections
• Provides information quickly
• Communicates to students that you care
about their learning

32. CATs are useful for students.
• Gives them a meta view of their own learning
• Provides them feedback to alter study habits
• Provides evidence that the instructor cares

33. Your CAT should contain all three
components below.
Gather Evaluate Communicate
information results to
student
from ALL
students responses students

34. Sample exam Question

35. Which of the following patients would
you assign to the LPN?
A. A new admit from the ER
B. A patient with a blood pressure of 150/90
C. A patient to be discharged later today
D. A surgical patient just arrived from the
recovery room

36. This work is from which culture?
A. Sumerian
B. Mycenaean
C. Etruscan
D. Minoan

37. The diagram shows a wheel rolling without slipping along a
horizontal road, from left to right. A piece of mud on the rim
becomes detached at M when the contact between wheel and
road is at P. Which of the Arrows, A, B, C, D, E best shows the
initial direction of the path followed by the detached particle?

38. The Bookends Model illustrates how Classroom
Assessment Techniques can be incorporated into a lecture.
Karl Smith

39. Tips for implementing active learning
techniques.
• Begin on day one
• Start small
• Tell students why they are doing it
• Expect some resistance
• Create more class time

40. Activity – Design an active learning
approach for the portion of your
teaching that you would like to make
more active. Describe this to your
partner.

41. Learning is the goal of
teaching
Learning can’t be
measured
Active learning requires
students do something
Choose the “do” wisely