Nov 16, 2013
Teaching / learning ideas tap our shoulders all the time. Which are worthy? Would Think-Pair-Share work for me, or should I try One-Minute Paper instead? Can I do both – and maybe Muddiest Point too? When I attend a cross-discipline conference, I typically find...
Nov 12, 2013
The jigsaw technique is a collaborative learning strategy that was developed in the early 1970s by Elliot Aronson, a well-known psychologist and co-author with Carol Tavris of Mistakes Were Made (But Not By Me). The jigsaw technique divides the class into groups—often...
Nov 11, 2013
When I began teaching in 2002, I was surprised to find so many students coming to class without completing (often, without even starting) their reading assignments. Why didn’t they read? How could they expect to succeed? Further, what should I do? Were my...
Nov 4, 2013
Lately I’ve been studying Agile Programming. One idea new to me is the concept of “technology debt.” The gist is this: if developers choose to release a version of software with fewer features or more bugs than planned and desired, they accumulate a...
Nov 4, 2013
One strategy to elicit critical thinking is to omit important facts when presenting scenarios to students for classroom discussion. Often instructors take considerable care in class to articulate each important fact within a particular scenario that students will...
