This page contains "leftovers"that were in my original pages about Thinking Skills in Chemistry Labs(in March 1999) but haven't been used in the new revision, in April 2000. There are three sections: 5, 7, and 3.
5. The Process of InstructionalDesign. Originally, this material served two main functions:it was part of my presentation at the ACS national meeting in March 1999,and it was a long version of my "educational philosophy" whenI applied for the position of General Chemistry Lab Coordinator at the Universityof Maryland in College Park. { I got second place. But the interviewwas a good experience, and I visited Washington D.C. for the first time!}
7. My Personal Goalsin March 1999. {most of these goals are still current}
3. Strategies for EffectiveTeaching. Some ideas about using my models of Integrated Scientific Method (ISM) and Integrated Design Method(IDM) to help students learn thinking skills.
5.The Process of Instructional Design
5A. Cooperation
The process of instructional design is inherently complicated,requiring the careful consideration of many interrelated factors. It is even more complex in a large university where ideas are coming fromcourse instructors and TAs, plus a lab director, chemistry program coordinator,and support staff. Typically there is a diversity of opinions aboutgoals, activities, and methods, so it is impossible to please everyone. The best solution is to recognize the need for flexibility and cooperation,and agree that a reasonable objectiveis to aim for an optimal balancing of our alternative visions for education.
5B. Teaching Assistants
In many schools, one challenge isto get consistently good teaching from TAs who have a wide range of ability,experience, and motivation.
preparation: The goal is to help TAs (in weekly discussions,...) bemaximally effective with minimal investment of their time. {an added bonus: While TAs are learning more about scientificthinking skills, in an effort to teach these skills, thiscan improve their own thinking skills, which will be useful when they doscientific research in grad school and later in life. }
feedback: Due to their contact with students, TAs are experts onwhat is happening in labs and how this can be improved.
policies: When designing labs and deciding course policies, an importantgoal is to make life more pleasant and productive for TAs.
5C. Radical and Practical
Educators should make decisionsbased on merit, not tradition, by examining every activity (old or new)and asking whether it performs a useful educational function. Butthis radical attitude should be combined with a recognition that -- whenour objective is to achieve maximally beneficial results in a limited amountof time -- instead of aiming for a fresh beginning (with a new set of goals,activities, and methods) it is often more practical and immediately productiveto build on what already exists, to use the past for improving the future. The following paragraph describes a few of the many interactions (betweenpast, present, and future, and between goals, activities, and methods) thatstimulate and guide the process of design.
Educators should make decisions based on merit, not tradition, by examiningevery activity (old or new) and asking whether it performs a useful educationalfunction. But this radical attitude should be tempered by a recognitionthat -- when our objective is to achieve maximally beneficial results ina limited amount of time -- instead of aiming for a fresh beginning witha new set of goals, activities, and methods, often it is more practicaland immediately productive to build on what already exists. This approach,with a flexible overlapping of steps, begins with agoal-oriented analysis of activities now being used in labs: a careful examination of these activities (in Step 2) stimulates productivethinking about goals (in Step 1), which inspires revisions or supplementsto existing activities (in Step 2). Step 3 is a logical extensionof this analysis: we just add reflection activities-- which encourage students to think about what is being done (Step 2) andwhat can be learned (Step 1) -- to the activities already being done ina lab.
5D. Opinions
Here are a few of my opinions,held with varying degrees of confidence:
The main goal of labs should be tohelp students learn thinking skills, with teaching chemistry concepts asonly a secondary goal.
Students should have an opportunityto learn in a variety of ways:
DIRECT learningby reading or listening can be effective when techniques of activelyconstructive "reception learning" are explained and emphasized,but the most important factor is whether studentsare motivated to learn.
ACTION learningshould be the main focus of labs, with studentslearning by doing.
INQUIRY learningcan be very effective, especially for promoting active thinking and motivation,but only when it is done well. Otherwise,it will be frustrating for students and teachers. The key to effectiveguided inquiry is achieving a "balance of mystery"so a problem is not too easy or too difficult. The levels of difficultyand activity can be adjusted by carefully controllingthe information that is provided and withheld, and by providingscaffolding and coaching for intellectual and/or emotional support.
COOPERATIVE learningin groups offers many valuable benefits, but sometimes (especially for experienceusing lab equipment) students should work individually.
This discussion continues below.
And other opinions are expressed inthe Discussion-Based Labs page.
An Appendix for Section 5:
The section below is a detailed version of some ideas that are discussedabove.
GOAL-DIRECTED DESIGNOF INSTRUCTION
How can we improve our labs? A general process of design -- by developing goals, activities, and teachingmethods -- is outlined below. A detailed analysis of the design processis provided by a model of Integrated Design Method: first definegoals (in this case, the desired "learning outcome" characteristicsfor a system of labs); then develop ideas for labs, and domental experiments (to generate predictions about student experiencesand learning outcomes) or do actual experiments (to generate observationsabout experiences and outcomes); compare predictions with goals orcompare observations with goals; adjust ideas (and maybegoals) in an effort to achieve a match between predictions/observationsand goals. { In order to learn from a wider range of educational "experiments"we should consider all relevant experience, both first-hand and second-hand.}
This process is inherently complex becauseeffective instructional design requires the careful consideration of manyinterrelated factors and a wide variety of potential solutions. Itis even more complicated in a large university where -- by contrast witha smaller school (or high school) where one course instructor is responsiblefor both lectures and labs -- many people are involved, with ideas aboutlabs coming from instructors, TAs, lab director, coordinator, and supportstaff. In such a setting, typically there is a diversity of opinionsabout goals, activities, and methods, so it will be impossible to totallyplease everyone. Instead, we can agree that a reasonable objectiveis to aim for an optimal balancing of our alternative visions for education. Here are a few of my own opinions:
In expressing these views there aremany "shoulds" that I hold with varying degrees of confidenceand perceived importance. But I know there are other rational perspectives,and I recognize the need for flexibility and cooperation as we "aimfor an optimal balancing of our alternative visions."
TEACHING ASSISTANTS
In a large department, itis difficult to get consistently high quality of teaching in general chemistrylabs that are taught by TAs who have a wide range of abilities, experience,and motivation. An appropriate question -- Should we therefore avoidany instruction that cannot be taught equally well by all TAs? -- is discussedin Discussion-Based Labs. This section willfocus on three TA-related aspects of labs: preparation, feedback, and policies.
preparation: The goal isto help TAs be maximally effective with minimal investment of their owntime. In weekly training/discussion sessions, supplemented by writtentip-sheets, we can help TAs prepare for labs. { In addition, therecan be special "help sessions" for foreign TAs who are not fluentin English, especially to help them prepare for discussion-based labs. }
feedback: TAs are the mostvaluable source of feedback about what is happening in labs and how thiscan be improved, since they are teaching the labs and have direct contactwith students. Feedback can be gathered in the weekly preparationsessions, by talking with TAs during or after labs, or observing interactionsduring lab, and in informal conversations and e-mail. TAs will bemore eager to provide feedback if they know theirinput will be used when labs are designed and policies are determined. / The lab director (or support staff,...) can also gather feedbackdirectly from students, but TAs are in a better position to do this on aregular basis.
policies: When designinglabs and deciding course policies, one objective should be to make lifemore pleasant and productive for TAs. We should always consider theGolden Rule by asking: If I were a TA, what would I want the policyto be? Even better, ask TAs what they want the policy to be. Even though their opinions should not be decisive, since other factors areinvolved-- such as the preferences of the course instructors or lab directorand, more important, how to achieve a goal of "the greatest good"for students who will be taking the labs -- the TAs' suggestions for achievingthis goal (and for improving their own working conditions) should be animportant consideration.
This website describes a proposal, not a finished project.
Regarding this proposal, my professional goals are to find:
1) lively discussion and constructive feedback,
2) collaborators who want to develop creative ideas for labs, and
3) a position in a chemistry department working on instructional development,possibly in an "educational support staff" role; my mainpriority is to work with people who share my enthusiasm for the type ofeducation described here.
A brief resume follows.
degrees: BAin Chemistry from Univ of California at Irvine, MSin Chemistry from Univ of Washington, MAin History of Science from Univ of Wisconsin (in Madison),and PhD in Science Education (Curriculum& Instruction) from Univ of Wisconsin.
academic awards: Was selected bythe American Chemical Society as "The Best Chemistry Student" two times, firstfor all high schools of Orange County, CA, and then for U.C. Irvine. Received NSF Fellowship for graduate studyin chemistry.
My doctoral dissertation synthesizesideas (mainly from scientists and philosophers, but also from sociologists,psychologists, and historians) into a model of scientific method, and appliesthis model for the integrative analysis of innovative inquiry teaching. The main ideas are summarized in a website, "Scienceand Design: Methods for Using Creativity and Critical Thinking in ProblemSolving."
For more details, see an informal "
3. Strategies for Effective Teaching
Most teachers agree that educationshould help students learn higher-level thinking skills. In a typicalchemistry course, however, time is limited and there is lots of "content"to cover, so thinking skills are rarely given the attention they deserve. But in chemistry labs there is more flexibility due to fewer expectationsabout content coverage, so more time can be devoted to thinking skills. This section explores some possibilities for teaching in an "Aesop'sActivities" lab environment.
REFLECTION ACTIVITIES
Activities that promote awareness(oriented either internally or externally) are at the heart of an Aesop'sApproach to teaching and learning. / reflection: the fixing of the mind on some subject; serious thought; contemplation. (Webster's Dictionary)
In an explicitreflection activity, a teacher directs a student's attention to "whatcan be learned" from an experience, and explains why a student mightwant to take advantage of the valuable opportunity. In this way ateacher can encourage two important motivations: intentional learning andforward-looking application. { motivation is discussed in the Aesop's Activities page }
In a lab, for example, students can learnthe complementary thinking skills that are combined in a system we callscientific method. One way to help studentsunderstand the mutually supportive relationships between thinking skillsis to use my model of Integrated Scientific Method. Students may becomemore motivated to pursue their own intentional mastery of thinking skillsif they realize -- because a teacher calls it to their attention -- thatsimilar problem-solving methods are used by scientists in different fields,so they can transfer skills from chemistry to their own field of science,such as biology or physics. Engineering students can join in the fun,too, because similar methods are also used in a wide range of "design"fields where the goal is to design products and/or strategies. { Theessential elements in the process of design, and the relationships betweendesign and science, are outlined in my model of Integrated Design Method.}
But even if a student is not highly motivated,learning can be promoted by an implicit reflectionactivity. For example, a student's attention can be directedto a learning opportunity by a simple request to discuss a question withthe TA. If this action-request shifts a student from a minimally aware"just going through the motions" mode to a more aware "activethinking" mode, it has served a useful purpose. The educationalfunction of reflection is similar to a basic principle of active reading:"Will stop-and-go reading slow you down? Yes, but that can begood. If original awareness is minimal and you don't understand-and-rememberwhat you read, it would be more appropriate to call it 'wasting time' than'reading'. Activity breaks can help you understand and remember; becauseof increased learning efficiency, brief pauses for thinking will save youtime in the long run."
A mixture of teaching styles, includingboth explicit and implicit requests for reflection by students, is practicaland effective. For example, at the beginning of each semester I givestudents a handout with TRUESTORIES about a skier (me) and a welder (a friend) that emphasizethe value of a "searching for insight" approach to studying. Occasionally during the semester I'll refer to the principle of activereflection in a general way, as illustrated in these stories. But more often this concept is situated in a specific context -- "itwill be useful for you to learn this" -- or in implicit requests thattend to promote active thinking automatically, independent of motivation. And perhaps students will discover that thinking really is fun, and theywill become motivated to do it more often and more skillfully!
METHODS FOR PROBLEM SOLVING
This is a bonus section, since"models for methods" are not essential for any of the lab proposalsin this paper.
There are many interesting possibilitiesfor using my models of Integrated Scientific Method(ISM) and Integrated Design Method (IDM)for instructional design or for instruction, to help students learn theinterrelationships between the many different aspects of creativity andcritical thinking that are coherently combined in the problem-solving methodsused by scientists and designers.
In labs an obviousstarting point is the hypothetico-deduction(in Section 1 of ISM) that is the logical foundation for scientific methodsof thinking. This leads naturally into the closely related logicalprocess of retroduction (Section 5). Students should have an opportunity to analyze and design experiments(Section 6). Students can even think about personal-culturalfactors (Sections 3 and 8), as in a discussion of how numerical valuesget into the CRC Handbook, and how scientists handle their disagreementswith each other. And ISM's analysis of problem solving (in Section7) can introduce students to the generalizability and transferability ofscientific methods.
In fact, the methodsof science (described in ISM) are a "special case" of a more generalizedmethod for design (described in IDM) in which a designer sets goals (forthe desired characteristics of a product, strategy, or theory), formulatesinitial ideas, and then does experiments (either mental or physical) toproduce predictions or observations that can be compared with the goals,to serve as a basis for modifications of the ideas.
If you want to learn more about thesemodels, visit my website, Science and Design: Methodsfor Using Creativity and Critical Thinking in Problem Solving.
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