This document discusses the Just-in-Time Teaching (JiTT) instructional strategy. JiTT involves students completing online pre-class assignments called "WarmUps" that consist of conceptual questions about the upcoming material. The instructor reviews student responses just before class to modify their lesson plan as needed. Research shows JiTT improves student preparation and engagement compared to traditional lectures. The document advocates adopting JiTT and provides guidance on writing effective WarmUp questions and incorporating student feedback into class discussions to improve learning.

1. Name
School
Department
JUST IN TIME TEACHING
A 21ST CENTURY LEARNING
TECHNIQUE
@ AIMS CC FALL FACULTY CONFERENCE,
2016
Please navigate to
LearningCatalytics.com/Demo
Fill in the info (fake is fine).
Session ID: 81289925

2. THE EVIDENCE STANDARD
Teachers can feel bombarded…
I strive to be a scholarly teacher …
• Apply the rigor we bring to our academic
disciplines to the discipline of teaching.
• Choose teaching methods that are strongly
informed by the best empirical evidence
available.

3. In your teaching do you have a method for holding
students accountable for preparing for class?
Previous anonymous poll results (compiled):
~17% → I don’t, but I ask/threaten really well
~50% → I use a paper method (quiz, journal…)
~11% → I use a digital method (clickers, etc.)
~5% → I use Just-in-Time Teaching
~17% → I have some other method
(N ~ 211)
A)
B)
C)
D)
E)

4. OVERVIEW
1. Motivation for change
2. Basics of Just-in-Time Teaching
3. Mock example
4. Choose our own adventure:
a) Evidence for effectiveness
b) Best tools for JiTT
c) Getting student “buy-in”
d) Writing good questions
5. Summaries

5. PHYSICS EDUCATION REVOLUTION
Eric Mazur, Physicist at Harvard:

6. “ALL SIMILARLY (IN)EFFECTIVE…”

7. University of
Washington
CU Boulder
University of Illinois
at Urbana-Champaign

8. TECHNIQUE & TECHNOLOGY
Technique:
Just-in-Time Teaching
Technology:
Online question & response tools
Learne
r
Teacher

9. JUST-IN-TIME TEACHING
Online pre-class assignments
called WarmUps
First half - Students
• Conceptual questions, answered in sentences
• Graded on thoughtful effort
Second half - Instructor
• Responses are read “just in time”
• Instructor modifies that day’s plan accordingly.
• Aggregate and individual (anonymous) responses
are displayed in class.
Learne
r
Teacher

10. Suppose we hold one end of a slinky
and let it hand down, as shown. Think
about what the bottom end of the
slinky will do once we release the top
end.
In the few moments after the top is
released, what will the bottom of the slinky do?
A) Moves up B) Moves down C) Stays put
10

11. WARM-UP: SLINKY DROP
In the few moments after the top is
released, what will the bottom of the slinky do?
From last night:
~50% → Stays put (good reasoning)
~50% → Misunderstood the question

13. Consider a typical day in your class. What fraction
of students did their preparatory work before
coming to class?
A) 0% - 20%
B) 20% - 40%
C) 40% - 60%
D) 60% - 80%
E) 80% - 100%
13
29%
32%
20%
14%
5%
(𝑁~238)

14. 0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
WMS 390Y (N = 19)
Avg. = 77%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
PSY 2850 (N = 23)
Avg. = 68%
~Daily WarmUps
~Weekly WarmUps
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Day 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28
Physics 2711 (N = 24)
Avg. = 72%
0%
20%
40%
60%
80%
100%
Day 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24 26 28
Physics 1000 (N = 22)
Avg. = 63%

15. WARMUP QUESTIONS
• Every-day language
• Occasional simple comprehension question
• Mostly “higher level” questions
• Any question is better than none (don’t be precious)
Connections to evidence:
–Pre-class work reduces working memory load
during class.
–Multimodal practice (not learning styles):
JiTT brings reading, writing and discussion as
modes of practice.

16. METACOGNITION
Two questions in every WarmUp:
First:“What aspect of the material did you find
the most difficult or interesting.”
Last: “How much time did you spend on the pre-
class work for tomorrow?”
Connections to evidence:
–Forced practice at metacognition:
Students regularly evaluate their own
interaction with the material.

17. THE JITT FEEDBACK LOOP
Student responses:
• Graded on thoughtful effort
• Sampled and categorized for display
• Quoted anonymously
Closing the loop:
• Respond to some students digitally
• Class time shifts to active engagement.

18. JUST-IN-TIME TEACHING
A different student role:
• Actively prepare for class
(not just reading/watching)
• Actively engage in class
• Compare your progress & plan accordingly
A different instructor role:
• Actively prepare for class with you
(not just going over last year’s notes )
• Modify class accordingly
• Create interactive engagement opportunities
Learne
r
Teacher

19. MAZUR AFTER 1 YEAR

20. ELSEWHERE?

21. Summary Slides

22. A POSSIBLE PLAN
Choose one course you will teach next term.
A. Write two questions for each class meeting:
1. One lower-level (maybe multi-choice?).
One higher-level (sentences).
2. Give yourself 10 minutes to write each one
B. Write a standard (1st) metacognitive question
C. Discuss one question at the top of class, and
one in the middle. Use the metacognitive
responses as break points or highlights.

23. MY SUMMARY
JiTT may be among the easiest research-based
instructional strategies that you can consistently
integrate into your teaching.
From an evidence-based perspective, JiTT
addresses often-neglected areas.
Be prepared to find that students know less than
we might hope. (Perhaps freeing?)

24. YOUR SUMMARY
If you want to implement JiTT, what is your next
concrete action?
Email: jeff.loats@gmail.com
Twitter: @JeffLoats
Slides: www.slideshare.net/JeffLoats

25. JITT REFERENCES & RESOURCES
Simkins, Scott and Maier, Mark (Eds.) (2010) Just inTimeTeaching: Across the Disciplines, Across the
Academy, Stylus Publishing.
Gregor M. Novak, Andrew Gavrini, Wolfgang Christian, Evelyn Patterson (1999) Just-in-Time
Teaching: Blending Active Learning with WebTechnology. Prentice Hall. Upper Saddle River NJ.
K. A. Marrs, and G. Novak. (2004). Just-in-Time Teaching in Biology: Creating an Active Learner
Classroom Using the Internet. Cell Biology Education, v. 3, p. 49-61.
Jay R. Howard (2004). Just-in-Time Teaching in Sociology or How I Convinced My Students to
Actually Read the Assignment. Teaching Sociology,Vol. 32 (No. 4 ). pp. 385-390. Published by:
American Sociological Association
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3649666
S. Linneman, T. Plake (2006). Searching for the Difference: A ControlledTest of Just-in-Time
Teaching for Large-Enrollment Introductory Geology Courses. Journal of Geoscience Education, Vol.
54 (No. 1)
Stable URL:http://www.nagt.org/nagt/jge/abstracts/jan06.html#v54p18
ON-DEMAND SLIDES