A Unique Written Assignment to Facilitate Critical Thinking in an Online Course

Transcription

1 A Unique Written Assignment to Facilitate Critical Thinking in an Online Course Elizabeth S. Browning Instructor, Human Neuropsychology (PSY 344 Online) Department of Psychology University of New Mexico

2 Overview Background and course structure Reasons for a written assignment and reasons against a written assignment The assignment Student feedback and lessons learned 2

3 Background Teaching online PSY344 since spring 2011 Enrollment I started with 30 students then 40 students then 45 students now 52 students Needed to use critical thinking in the course Discussions are not enough Active learning/constructivism 3

4 Course Structure Human Neuropsychology, PSY344 (Online) Neuropsychology: brain behavior relationships Experimental neuropsychology: study healthy people to take advantage of specific features of the human nervous system (visual fields and lateralization) Clinical neuropsychology: assessment, management, and rehabilitation of people who have neurocognitive deficits Cognitive neuropsychology: study people who have suffered brain injury or neurological illness 4

5 Course Homepage 5

6 Example Learning Module 6

7 Course Structure Exams Midterm (15%) Final (25%) Weekly Quizzes (24%) Weekly Discussions (16%) Paper (20%) 7

8 Reasons FOR a Written Assignment Allows students to exercise and demonstrate personal writing ability Shows students how to use UNM s library databases and resources Enhances students ability to evaluate scientific evidence Students must use critical thinking Being in charge of one s learning Active learning versus passive learning Topic is applicable to each student Instructor is rewarded! Outstanding writing Exposure to various current news/topics in the field 8

9 Reasons AGAINST a Written Assignment Allows students to exercise and demonstrate personal writing ability Time spent explaining Time spent grading especially in larger classes! 9

10 The Written Assignment Students must write a 4 5 page paper critiquing a news story and its corresponding research article Topic of student s choice (related to neuropsychology) Student picks news story Locates/downloads source article Student must gain instructor approval early (this is very important) 10

11 Example Student Topic/Choice: Sleep and Memory 11

12 Example Student Topic/Choice: Bullying and Depression 12

13 Example of Student Topic/Choice: Alzheimer s Disease and Stem Cells 13

14 Approval Required! Students see instructions in WebCT along with example assignments Students have a deadline toward the beginning of the semester to gain approval from me Often students who are not familiar with scientific journals need extra guidance 14

15 Article Approval Assignment Description/Overview Grading Rubric 15

16 Description of Paper 16

17 Four objectives: Grading Rubric 1. Topic/Article approval (5 points) 2. Review/Discussion/Reaction (8 points) 3. Neuropsychology knowledge (4 points) 4. General grammar/deadline (3 points) 17

18 Will this Assignment Work in Face to Face Classes? Yes! Recommend using WebCT or online system due to: Approval of news story/article combination for each student Ease of implementing/using a grading rubric 18

19 How to Create a Rubric in WebCT Teach Tab Grading Forms 19

20 Tools that will Help Students (and You) 1. WebCT links to news/source websites 2. WebCT links to elibrary resources and Ask a Librarian 3. WebCT Article Approval assignment and Paper assignment 4. Explicit guidance regarding length, formatting, and general expectations Examples of high scoring papers Links to APA or MLA formatting guidelines as needed 5. Grading rubric Detailed Available to students! 20

21 1. WebCT Links to News Sources I post many links and allow students to post links List started small and grew over time with each class Weblinks Tool 21

22 2. WebCT Links to Elibrary Resources Even in a 300 level class Some students never look at peer reviewed journal articles Never used library databases at UNM I tell students to look at these links first If stuck, I ask them to come talk with me (if possible) And/or I them a standardized about how to use UNM s database system 22

23 2. WebCT Links to Elibrary Resources Links to elibrary and Ask a Librarian tool 23

24 2. WebCT Links to Elibrary Resources Also canned responses to students s Excerpt from an I wrote to a student who asked how to find sources 24

25 3. WebCT Approval Assignment and Paper Assignment Approval Assignment Easier to track in WebCT and MUCH LESS traffic Multiple attempts OK Start early/lots of reminders Students must copy and paste the news story link into the assignment and attach the.pdf of the research article I started by using for approval not so fun 25

26 3. WebCT Approval Assignment and Paper Assignment Paper Assignment Rubric and all attachments are there Due date explicitly stated (plus allow for up to 1 week late) Can easily track who hasn t turned it in Students must copy and paste the news story link into the assignment and attach the.pdf of the research article (again) 26

27 3. WebCT Approval Assignment and Paper Assignment 27

28 Tools that will Help Students (and You) 1. WebCT links to news/source websites 2. WebCT links to elibrary resources and Ask a Librarian 3. WebCT Approval assignment and Paper assignment 4. Explicit guidance regarding length, formatting, and general expectations Examples of high scoring papers Links to APA or MLA formatting guidelines as needed 5. Grading rubric Detailed Available to students! 28

29 Student Feedback The aspect of [the assignment] that I found most interesting was analyzing how accurately, or inaccurately, research is portrayed to the general public. This assignment taught a good lesson about not believing everything you read, and taking time to go back to the source material to verify information. I feel this is applicable to any subject, arts, politics, history or science. I loved the fact that I was able to choose the topic of interest because when a topic is assigned, the student feels an obligation to the paper instead of having fun with it. I was able to have fun with this assignment knowing that I was doing research and writing about a topic that interests me. 29

30 Student Feedback I definitely had to use critical thinking when writing this paper because searching the UNM elibrary tools/databases wasn't as easy as I thought it was going to be. I appreciated the fact that [the assignment] required us to think critically about the differences between news media and academic writing. I can't tell you how many times my grandma s me telling me about something she read on Yahoo news or saw on Dr. Oz without doing any kind of follow up research. 30

31 Lessons Learned You need to approve topics and allow multiple attempts (without penalty) Some students need more guidance Some students have never SEEN a research article Approving topics is difficult (at best) through Multiple reminders work WONDERS Students see you have HIGH expectations Example papers are extremely helpful to guide students Make paper due 2/3 or 3/4 of way through semester Allows time for you to give thoughtful feedback (comments) Allows student time to read/review comments 31

32 Improvements to be Made Updating and adjusting the rubric (every semester) Narrowing down topics a bit more But not too much Helping students who are procrastinators Perhaps an outline due? Perhaps a draft version due? Peer review? Allow/encourage students to discuss their findings/thoughts about their topic for a week 32

33 Conclusion Students ENJOY writing about their interest And I enjoy reading about new research in the broader field of neuropsychology This format can be used across all disciplines This is not just another write about the cerebellum paper 33

34 Thank You and Questions If you would like more information please me Elizabeth S. Browning