Communication pubs.acs.org/jchemeduc
ConfChem Conference on Flipped Classroom: Just-in-Time Teaching in Chemistry Courses with Moodle Jennifer L. Muzyka* Chemistry Department, Centre College, Danville, Kentucky 40422, United States
Downloaded by SUNY UPSTATE MEDICAL UNIV on August 27, 2015 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date (Web): July 21, 2015 | doi: 10.1021/ed500904y
S Supporting Information *
ABSTRACT: In the Just-in-Time Teaching approach, a faculty member assigns readings to students before every class. After the students have done the daily reading, they access a short reading quiz using a course management system (e.g., Moodle). The faculty member uses student responses to the quiz in the preparation of the day’s class material and is able to tailor his or her explanations to target specific student questions or confusion. This paper describes the use of this approach to engage students in chemistry classes at Centre College. This communication summarizes one of the invited papers to the ConfChem online conference Flipped Classroom, held from May 9 to June 12, 2014, and hosted by the ACS DivCHED Committee on Computers in Chemical Education (CCCE). KEYWORDS: Organic Chemistry, Second-Year Undergraduate, Student-Centered Learning, First-Year Undergraduate/General
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is the ability to provide timely feedback for students.11,13 Another important benefit to students is that they progress at a steady pace as the class progresses rather than slipping behind and then cramming right before a test.2,14 Our informal observations indicate that students’ reading skills improve, consistent with the student survey results that indicate that these students found the textbook a useful resource in support of their learning. Students realize that familiarity with the basic terms prior to class is expected. Significantly, students recognize that their ability to read and comprehend technical material is improving as the course progresses. Moreover, immediate feedback on what students find challenging enables instructors to address student misconceptions as soon as they arise. These changes in course structure provide enhanced opportunity for active learning methods3,15,16 such as Peer Instruction4,6,7,17 and other small group activities5,18−20 without sacrificing content in the course overall. The main active learning approach adopted in this course was asking clicker questions which students would answer first individually and then a second time after discussing the concept with their classmates. Evidence suggests that vocal students learn more during class than their silent classmates, so this opportunity for small group discussion is important.21 After a concept has been thoroughly discussed in class, students will individually answer a clicker question about the topic. Without letting students see the range of responses to the first round of polling, I encourage them to discuss the question with a neighbor and to answer the question again. This discussion of the question and second polling with clickers is called Peer Instruction. It has been demonstrated to produce gains in student learning.22−24
his paper was discussed from May 30 to June 5 during the spring 2014 ConfChem online conference, Flipped Classroom. This conference was hosted by the ACS DivCHED Committee on Computers in Chemical Education (CCCE).1 Below are highlights taken from the full paper which was discussed online. In most classrooms, instructors lecture on course material, realizing that students are being exposed to the material for the first time during that class period.2−6 Later, the students practice applying the concepts as they struggle individually with homework sets or suggested problems. The flipped classroom approaches alter this tradition, requiring students to begin the process before the concepts are introduced in class. Most faculty members who implement flipped classroom approaches have their students watch videos before coming to class. In the approach used here, students read assigned sections of the textbook and answer warm-up questions that are designed to draw their attention to the important concepts in the reading.7 In this way, the in-class discussions are more sophisticated. More importantly, the students can tackle problems of greater complexity during class with the instructor present to provide guidance.
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ADOPTING A NEW INSTRUCTIONAL APPROACH Just-in-Time Teaching (JiTT) was developed by Patterson at the United States Air Force Academy and Novak at Indiana University−Purdue University Indianapolis, both of whom teach physics.8,9 Mazur and colleagues have reported using the combination of JiTT with Peer Instruction, showing that larger learning gains were observed with their physics students.7,10 Chemists have been slower to adopt the use of JiTT, but there are some reports of its use in the literature.11,12 After reading the assigned textbook sections, students answer questions about the material. The last question asks students what they found most confusing or most interesting in the reading assignment. JiTT presents benefits for both students and faculty members. One of the most powerful benefits of this approach © XXXX American Chemical Society and Division of Chemical Education, Inc.
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DOI: 10.1021/ed500904y J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX
Journal of Chemical Education
Downloaded by SUNY UPSTATE MEDICAL UNIV on August 27, 2015 | http://pubs.acs.org Publication Date (Web): July 21, 2015 | doi: 10.1021/ed500904y
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Communication
Practices for Teaching in Higher Education; Stylus Publishing: Sterling, VA, 2010. (11) Chambers, K. A.; Blake, B. Enhancing Student Performance in First-Semester General Chemistry Using Active Feedback through the World Wide Web. J. Chem. Educ. 2007, 84, 1130−1135. (12) Slunt, K. M.; Giancarlo, L. C. Student-Centered Learning: A Comparison of Two Different Methods of Instruction. J. Chem. Educ. 2004, 81 (7), 985. (13) Marrs, K. A.; Novak, G. Just-in-Time Teaching in Biology: Creating an Active Learner Classroom Using the Internet. Cell Biol. Educ. 2004, 3 (1), 49−61. (14) Kornell, N. Optimising Learning Using Flashcards: Spacing Is More Effective than Cramming. Appl. Cognit. Psychol. 2009, 23 (9), 1297−1317. (15) Hake, R. R. Interactive-Engagement versus Traditional Methods: A Six-Thousand-Student Survey of Mechanics Test Data for Introductory Physics Courses. Am. J. Phys. 1998, 66, 64−74. (16) Amaral, K. E.; Shank, J. D.; Shibley, I. A.; Shibley, L. R. WebEnhanced General Chemistry Increases Student Completion Rates, Success, and Satisfaction. J. Chem. Educ. 2013, 90 (3), 296−302. (17) Mazur, E. Peer Instruction: A User’s Manual; Prentice Hall series in educational innovation; Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ, 1997. (18) Pienta, N. J.; Cooper, M. M.; Greenbowe, T. J. Chemist’s Guide to Effective Teaching; Pearson Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ, 2005. (19) Wenzel, T. J. Evaluation Tools to Guide Students’ PeerAssessment and Self-Assessment in Group Activities for the Lab and Classroom. J. Chem. Educ. 2007, 84 (1), 182−186. (20) Cooper, M. M.; Cox, C. T.; Nammouz, M.; Case, E.; Stevens, R. An Assessment of the Effect of Collaborative Groups on Students’ Problem-Solving Strategies and Abilities. J. Chem. Educ. 2008, 85, 866. (21) Obenland, C. A.; Munson, A. H.; Hutchinson, J. S. Silent and Vocal Students in a Large Active Learning Chemistry Classroom: Comparison of Performance and Motivational Factors. Chem. Educ. Res. Pract. 2013, 14 (1), 73. (22) Smith, M. K.; Wood, W. B.; Adams, W. K.; Wieman, C.; Knight, J. K.; Guild, N.; Su, T. T. Why Peer Discussion Improves Student Performance on In-Class Concept Questions. Science 2009, 323 (5910), 122−124. (23) Brooks, B. J.; Koretsky, M. D. The Influence of Group Discussion on Students’ Responses and Confidence during Peer Instruction. J. Chem. Educ. 2011, 88 (11), 1477−1484. (24) Lasry, N.; Mazur, E.; Watkins, J. Peer Instruction: From Harvard to the Two-Year College. Am. J. Phys. 2008, 76 (11), 1066. (25) Moore, J.; Kosciuk, S. ToolsNew Traditions: Introductory Chemistry Beginning-of-semester Survey, http://www.flaguide.org/ tools/attitude/ntchempr.php (accessed Apr 16, 2015). (26) Moore, J.; Kosciuk, S. ToolsNew Traditions: Introductory Chemistry End-of semester Survey, http://www.flaguide.org/tools/ attitude/ntchempo.php (accessed Apr 16, 2015).
STUDENT RESPONSES TO JUST-IN-TIME TEACHING IN ORGANIC CHEMISTRY Student survey25,26 results indicate that students generally affirmed the effectiveness of the teaching methods to which they were exposed. Students taking organic chemistry courses were taught by three instructors who all use different pedagogical approaches. Students exposed to Just-in-Time Teaching with Peer Instruction found that clicker questions and discussions of the clicker questions played an influential role in their learning. These students also found the textbook to be a more valuable resource for their learning than did their peers whose instructors did not use these teaching methods. In conclusion, student responses to our survey indicate that they have embraced the pedagogical approaches used by instructors. (Complete survey results are provided in the Supporting Information.) Students who were offered a wider variety of pedagogical approaches found a wider variety of resources useful in their learning. I feel strongly that the benefits outweigh the costs in instructor time associated with implementing this pedagogical approach. I encourage other faculty members to consider this method to actively engage students and help them develop as independent learners.
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ASSOCIATED CONTENT
* Supporting Information S
The complete ConfChem paper with associated discussion. This material is available via the Internet at http://pubs.acs.org.
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AUTHOR INFORMATION
Corresponding Author
*E-mail:
[email protected]. Notes
The authors declare no competing financial interest.
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REFERENCES
(1) American Chemical Society Division of Chemical Education Committee on Computers in Chemical Education. 2014 Spring ConfChem: Flipped Classroom http://confchem.ccce.divched.org/ 2014SpringConfChem (accessed Apr 15, 2015). (2) Collard, D. M.; Girardot, S.; Deutsch, H. M. From the Textbook to the Lecture: Improving Prelecture Preparation in Organic Chemistry. J. Chem. Educ. 2002, 79 (4), 520−523. (3) Handelsman, J.; Ebert-May, D.; Beichner, R.; Bruns, P.; Chang, A.; DeHaan, R.; Gentile, J.; Lauffer, S.; Stewart, J.; Tilghman, S. M.; Wood, W. B. Scientific Teaching. Science 2004, 304 (5670), 521−522. (4) Mazur, E. Farewell, Lecture? Science 2009, 323, 50−51. (5) Paulson, D. R. Active Learning and Cooperative Learning in the Organic Chemistry Lecture Class. J. Chem. Educ. 1999, 76 (8), 1136. (6) Wagner, B. D. A Variation on the Use of Interactive Anonymous Quizzes in the Chemistry Classroom. J. Chem. Educ. 2009, 86 (11), 1300−1303. (7) Crouch, C. H.; Mazur, E. Peer Instruction: Ten Years of Experience and Results. Am. J. Phys. 2001, 69, 970−977. (8) Novak, G. M.; Gavrin, A.; Christian, W.; Patterson, E. Just-inTime Teaching: Blending Active Learning with Web Technology; Prentice Hall: Upper Saddle River, NJ, 1999. (9) Just-in-Time Teaching: Across the Disciplines, Across the Academy, 1st ed.; Simkins, S., Maier, M. H., Eds.; New Pedagogies and Practices for Teaching in Higher Education; Stylus Publishing: Sterling, VA, 2010. (10) Watkins, J.; Mazur, E. Just-in-Time Teaching and Peer Instruction. In Just-in-Time Teaching: Across the Disciplines, Across the Academy, 1st ed.; Simkins, S., Maier, M. H., Eds.; New Pedagogies and B
DOI: 10.1021/ed500904y J. Chem. Educ. XXXX, XXX, XXX−XXX
