IDEA EXCHANGE, FEBRUARY 2020 Thursday 2/27 Lincoln Metacognition

Facilitated by Amanda Vanner Exam Wrappers

Facilitated by Karen Kortz Reflecting on Your Own Teaching

Facilitated by Lisa Ethier Friday 2/28 Warwick Reflective Teaching and Learning

Facilitated by Ann Omollo Exam Wrappers

Facilitated by Renee Saris-Baglama Neuromyths

Facilitated by Regina Traficante Reflecting on Your Own Teaching

Facilitated by Leslie Dolan and Renee Anderson SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) Research

Facilitated by Justine Egan-Kunicki

Metacognition

Facilitated by Amanda Vanner

Idea Exchange, February 27, 2020

Incorporating Metacognitive Questions and Activities into Your Courses to Improve Student Learning Presented by Amanda M. Vanner, Psychology

METACOGNITION (Flavell, 1979) “Thinking about thinking”

STUDENTS CAN... Ask themselves reflective questions

FACULTY CAN...

Plan activities that promote metacognition

BACKGROUND and RESEARCH

HIGHLIGHTS + THEMES

- Involves planning, monitoring, and

evaluating

- Metacognitive skills can be learned (and

taught!)

- Metacognition improves with practice and

has implications for academic performance

(Seigler & Alibali, 2005)

LEARNER + FACULTY BENEFITS

- Improves self-awareness

- Metacognition can be applied to a variety

of problem solving scenarios (Zepeda, 2016)

HOW TO PROMOTE

METACOGNITION

- Develop simple, time-efficient

metacognitive activities

- Pose questions that encourage learners to

think about how to navigate academic tasks

and goals (Promoting, n.d.)

SAMPLE QUESTIONS (Tanner, 2012)

PLANNING

What do I need to do?

What is my end goal?

What do I need to know?

How much time will I need to

complete the task?

What resources will I need?

MONITORING

Do I understand what I’m doing?

Does this make sense?

Am I making progress?

Should I do something

differently?

ASSESSMENT/EVALUATION

Have I reached my goal?

What worked/did not work?

What will I do differently next

time?

POTENTIAL ACTIVITIES (Promoting, n.d.)

WRAPPERS

Lecture, Exam, Homework

Ex. Have students use Flipgrid to submit a post-

exam reflection. Generate questions aimed at the

planning, monitoring, and/or evaluation strategies

students used to prepare for the exam.

MINUTE PAPERS/“BIG IDEA” QUESTIONS

Ex. Ask students to parse out key themes from

lecture/in-class activities. Have students write a

bulleted list of the topics/terms they are struggling

to understand and prompt them to identify a

resource for better comprehension.

SELF-ASSESSMENTS

Ex. Ask students to reflect on their learning and

learning processes in a more structured, written

assignment.

ADDITIONAL OPTIONS

Reading Logs/Guided Readings; Interactive

Polling; Brief Memoirs (similar to social media

posts)

References Flavell, J. (1979). Metacognition and cognitive monitoring: A new area of cognitive–developmental inquiry. American

Psychologist, 34(10), 906-911.

Schraw, G. (2001). Promoting general metacognitive awareness. In H. J. Hartman (Ed.), Metacognition in learning and

instruction (pp. 3-16). Springer Netherlands.

Siegler, R. S., & Alibali, M. W. (2005). Children’s Thinking (4th Edition). Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Retrieved

from: http://developmentalcognitivescience.org/lab/7845_files/Children%27s%20Thinking%20-

%20Ch%207%20Memory%20Development.pdf

Tanner, K. D. (2012). Promoting student metacognition. CBE-Life Sciences Education, 11(2), 113-120.

Available: http://www.lifescied.org/content/11/2/113.full

The Harriet W. Sheridan Center for Teaching and Learning (n.d.). Promoting metacognition. Retrieved

from: https://www.brown.edu/sheridan/teaching-learning-resources/teaching-resources/classroom-

practices/promoting-metacognition

Zepeda, C. D., Richey, J. E., Ronevich, P., & Nokes-Malach, T. J. (2015). Direct instruction of metacognition benefits

adolescent science learning, transfer, and motivation: An in-vivo study. Journal of Educational Psychology,

107(4), 954-970. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/edu0000022

Exam Wrappers

Facilitated by Karen Kortz

(see Exam Wrappers handout on a later page)

Reflecting on Your Own Teaching

Facilitated by Lisa Ethier

Reflecting on Your Own Teaching

Facilitated by: Lisa Ethier

Educators often ask students to reflect on their own learning as a way of deepening their

understanding and making learning more meaningful. As a result, reflection becomes part of the

education process. Similarly, educators can make reflection on their own teaching a part of their

teaching practice.

In her article, Helping Your Students Learn To Reflect On Their Learning, Jackie Gerstein writes

“The only way that educators can teach and promote reflective practice by their students (of all

ages) in their own classrooms is to engage in, embrace, and fully understand this process

themselves.”

Begin by gathering information. Record what you do during class, how long it takes,

your reasons for doing things in a certain way, how effective it was, and the observed response

of your students.

Other means of gathering information: Ask for student feedback, ask a colleague to observe

your class, make a video of yourself teaching.

Ask yourself these questions: How effective was the lesson? How engaged were the students?

Was there a point when they began to lose interest? Are students having difficulty

understanding or mastering certain concepts or skills?

Keeping a journal or blog can be useful. Recording thoughts and observations below or

alongside your lesson plan can be helpful as well.

Explore ways of improving areas of weakness and amplifying strengths. In addition to reading about various pedagogical methods, discuss with colleagues, seek advice

from others and share your experiences.

Reflection can take place after each lesson, and more generally, at various points during the

semester, such as at mid-term and at the end of the semester. In addition to looking back at

past performance, a reflective practice also looks forward as it serves to inform future teaching.

In this way, teaching the same course repeatedly remains dynamic rather than static, keeping

educators, as well as students, engaged in the process.

Online Resources

Reflective Teaching: Exploring our Own Classroom Practice by Julie Tice

Meaningful Reflection: A Practical Approach by Cathryn Berger Kaye

3 Ways to Reflect with Purpose by Michael Paul

10 Ways To Be A More Reflective Teacher by Terri Heick

Helping Your Students Learn To Reflect On Their Learning by Jackie Gerstein

Resources CCRI Library

Becoming a Critically Reflective Teacher by Stephen D. Brookfield

TLC Evaluation Form

Reflective Teaching and Learning

Facilitated by Ann Omollo

1

A REFLECTIVE PROFESSIONAL

Reflective teaching - a process of self-observation and self-evaluation; a dialogue with self.

• requires a quietness of mind, self-honesty, and at least brief escapes from what can be the unsystematic clutter of our lives.

Entails:

• Looking at what you do in the classroom. • Thinking about why you do it. • Does it work?

A means of professional development that begins in our classroom.

The Process of Reflection

What would you like to reflect upon? Collect information. Analyze and Implement Effective Techniques. Keep it going.

How to collect Information

1. Self-Reflective Journal:

• Jot down a few notes describing your thoughts and then follow up with any observations you have about your students, after each lesson.

• Use sticky notes for initial thoughts after a lesson.

2. Video and Audio Recording:

Recordings provide unaltered and unbiased vantage point for how effective your lesson may be from both instructor and student perspective.

• Are instructions and explanations clear? • How much time do you allocate to student talk? • How do you respond to student talk? • To whom do you speak? • How do you come across to the students?

3. Student Feedback: Get students’ perspectives about how you are doing.

4. Peer Observation: Invite a colleague to come into your classroom and observe your teaching.

2

5. Blogging: Connecting with other educators through blogging makes learning and growing a collaborative effort.

Reflective Questions

• With what parts of the lesson did the students seem most engaged?

• With what parts of the lesson did students seem least engaged?

• Were my instructions clear?

• Was the lesson taught at a reasonable pace?

• Did all students participate in the lesson?

• How effective was the overall lesson?

• How can I do it better next time?

• Did I meet all of my objectives?

• Was I perceptive and sensitive to each of my students’ needs?

• How was my overall attitude and delivery throughout class?

• Are my teaching methods effective?

• Am I meeting each student’s academic needs?

• Am fostering belongingness?

• Am I capturing everyone’s attention?

• Am I connecting to my students’ interests?

• Am I being fair? Supportive? Understanding? Compassionate? Reasonable?

• Am I providing enough opportunities for success to my students?

• Am communicating my belief in my students?

• What do I need to do differently?

Analyze and Implement Effective Techniques

Any recurring patterns? If you video recorded your lesson, did you find anything that kept happening over and over?

Look at your student feedback forms. Is there anything that students kept talking about?

Once you figure out what needs to be changed, find a solution……

Avenues to explore:

• Talk to your colleagues about your findings and ask them for advice.

3

• Go online and read up on effective techniques that can help remedy your situation.

• Interact with other educators on blogs and on social media sites.

The ultimate goal of self-reflection is to improve the way you teach.

Through the findings you gather:

• you may gain the insight you need to take your instruction to the next level. • you may find that you’re already doing great.

Either way, self-reflection is a technique that can gauge your standing honestly and you should strive to implement it throughout the year.

Conclusion

• All educators need time to reflect and think about the different ways they can be better. We ask this of our students, so why shouldn't we do the same?

• Reflection is critical to your continued growth as a professional, whether you seek student feedback, leave yourself sticky notes, or blog your thoughts for colleagues.

• Self-reflection improves the quality of our teaching – There are always things we can do to improve the quality of educational provision for all learners.

• Ask yourself daily, “How did it go and how do you know?” What are your general

impressions, and what evidence do you have to support those impressions?

• You say it ‘works.’ How do you know? What can you point to as evidence? What would others say? What metrics are you using?

• Be honest with–but not critical of–yourself. No one is perfect, but reflection can help you identify those barriers that are keeping you from improving. This will require you to be honest with yourself; don’t rationalize your own mediocrity, but don’t tear yourself apart, either.

• Look for what is working. Don’t get stuck on fixing the broken bits in your teaching;

celebrate what you do well. Identify your own strengths and use them to bolster where you’re weak.

Exam Wrappers

Facilitated by Renee Saris-Baglama

Teaching and Learning Collaborative: Idea Exchange Community College of Rhode Island

Promoting Self-Reflection with Exam Wrappers

Learn about exam wrappers – short assignments that prompt students to reflect on their exam preparation and performance. They ask students to think about why they got questions wrong, how they studied, and how they will change what they do for the next exam. They can be assigned as homework, completed as part of an in-class activity or even added as questions on the exam itself. They promote students’ metacognitive skills and help them take ownership of their learning.

Thursday, February 27, 2020 2:00 – 4:00, Flanagan Campus, Room 1304

Karen Kortz, Ph.D. Department of Physics

Friday, February 28, 2020 1:30 – 3:00, Knight Campus, Room 1130

Renee N. Saris-Baglama, Ph.D. Department of Psychology

Saris-Baglama, R. N. (2016). Exam reflections: Promoting metacognition and self-regulated learning. Included in the 2016-2017 published list of Teaching Tips from the national Teaching Issues Writing Consortium.

Many new college students earn poor grades in introductory-level and gateway courses despite having strong confidence in their ability to earn high grades. Students often appear dumbfounded when they receive their first low exam score and may attribute their poor performance to a difficult test, instructor, or course subject matter rather than consider the exam preparation strategies that they utilized. Unfortunately, it is not unusual for students to underestimate the amount of study time required and to engage in less effective study strategies (e.g., cramming) than more effective ones (e.g., distributed practice). One way to help students become better learners is through self-reflection. Self-reflection promotes students’ critical thinking about how they approached a task, what worked and what didn’t and why, and how they might approach the task differently in the future. Recently Ambrose and colleagues (2010) and Lovett (2013) provided teachers with a simple and practical tool, referred to as an “Exam Wrapper,” for implementing structured self-reflection on exam performance to promote metacognition and self-regulated learning. Exam wrappers can be easily integrated into the feedback loop that takes place when graded exams are returned to students. Typically just a page or two long (for examples see https://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/examwrappers/), exam wrappers prompt students to think about their exam preparation (What did I do to prepare for this exam?), compare this to their exam performance (How did I perform?), analyze their strengths and weaknesses (What types of questions/problems did I miss and why?), and plan for how to adjust their learning strategies as needed (What can I do differently?). Students complete the exam wrapper in class during the graded exam review. Instructors can also review student responses to get a sense of whether or not students are using effective practices and provide feedback and recommendations. The wrappers are handed back to students prior to the next exam to remind them of their analysis and plans for adapting strategies. A study by Lovett (2013) found that among first-year math and science students, those who had greater exposure to exam wrappers were more likely to adopt effective study strategies. When I recently incorporated structured exam reflections into my teaching, the vast majority of community college students enrolled in my general psychology classes (n=65) reported benefits (see Table 1). Students’ open-ended comments suggested that this activity improved self-awareness and self-regulated learning (see Table 2), benefits that were achieved with minimal use of class time (approximately 10-12 minutes). Exam reflections promote metacognitive skills such as planning, monitoring, evaluating, and adjusting learning strategies, skills that are transferable beyond your particular classroom. If you want your students to adopt more effective learning strategies, exam reflections offer a simple way to quickly get your students thinking about how they approach learning and how they may better manage their learning.

Table 1. Student Perceptions of the Benefits of Exam Reflections Statements of Potential Benefits Percent Agreed Exam reflections were helpful in getting me to think about how I prepare for exams.

98.5%

I have changed something about the way I prepare for exams based on exam reflections.

73.8%

I have improved my study skills as a result of exam reflections. 73.8% Table 2. Sample Comments on Changes Made as a Result of Exam Reflections “I stopped cramming and was more aware of my studying.” “I took more time to study.” “I never really used flash cards but I noticed I did better when I used them!” “I review my textbook notes before and after class and do not “cram” my studying.” “Reading textbook chapters before we discuss them in class.”

References Ambrose, S., Bridges, M. W., DiPietro, M., Lovett, M. C., and Norman, M. K. (2010). How learning works: Seven research-based principles for smart teaching. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Emberly Center for Teaching Excellence & Education Innovation, Carnegie Mellon University. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://www.cmu.edu/teaching/designteach/teach/examwrappers/ Lovett, M. C. (2013). Make exams worth more than the grade: Using exam wrappers to promote metacognition. In M. Kaplan, N. Silver, D. LaVague-Manty, & D. Meizlish (Eds.), Using reflection and metacognition to improve student learning: Across the disciplines, across the academy (pp. 18-52). Sterling, VA: Stylus.

General Psychology Name: _______________________ Dr. Saris-Baglama 04 07 13

POST-EXAM REFLECTION

This activity is designed to provide you with an opportunity to reflect on your exam performance and the effectiveness of your exam preparation.

How many hours did you spend studying for this exam (approximately)? ___________

Did you space your study sessions (several shorter sessions with frequent material review) or “cram” (spend one very long session)? ________________

Did you spend as much time studying for this exam as you had planned? ___________

If not, why? ______________________________________________________

Have you missed any classes? Circle: Y or N

Have you missed any due dates on your LaunchPad Modules, Homework, or Quizzes? Y or N

Circle the number that best indicates your level of agreement with the following statements:

Strongly Disagree

Strongly Agree

The time I spent studying for this exam was sufficient. 1 2 3 4 5

The techniques I used to learn material for this exam were effective.

1 2 3 4 5

Please indicate whether or not you used each activity below to learn the material:

Reading textbook sections prior to class discussion Y _or N _

Reading textbook sections for the first time after class Y _or N _

Answering the textbook items at the end of a module Y _or N _

Re-reading or reviewing textbook sections (second time) after class Y _or N _

Highlighting information in textbook while reading Y_ or N _

Adding notes and examples from the textbook into your class notes Y _or N _

Reviewing your notes Y _or N _

Creating mental images or using pictures to understand concepts Y_ or N _

Creating and Reviewing Flashcards Y _or N _

Using the Study Guide to answer questions/take additional notes Y _or N _

Re-answering LearningCurve testing questions Y_ or N _

Asking yourself/explaining why something makes sense/works a certain way Y_ or N _

Relating material to self-relevant examples Y_ or N _

Discussing material and/or studying with a classmate or group Y _or N _

Discussing the material with a Psychology tutor Y _or N _

Examine the items that you missed. Estimate the number you missed based on the following:

Knowing facts, being familiar with terms, understanding concepts __________

Being able to apply knowledge and concepts in different contexts __________

Mistakes that make you say, “I knew that – how did I miss it?” __________

What things will you continue to do in preparation for the next exam?

Name at least two specific learning/study strategies.

What things will you try to do differently in preparing for the next exam?

Name at least two specific learning/study strategies.

Why do you think these strategies will help you improve your learning and performance on the next exam?

Please feel free to add something that I could do (something new or something you’d like me to continue to do) to help support your learning and preparation for the next exam.

Geology 1020 Prof. Karen Kortz

Name: ______________________________

EXAM WRAPPER

You must fully and thoughtfully complete ALL questions to receive points. Partial credit will NOT be given.

Exam Preparation Evaluation

1. Approximately how many hours did you spend studying for this exam? ______ hours 2. Circle the number that best fits your agreement:

Strongly Disagree

Strongly Agree

The time I spent studying for this exam was sufficient.

1 2 3 4 5

I should have studied “smarter” for this exam. 1 2 3 4 5 3. Read through the “Learning techniques” on the last page of this handout. Estimate the

percentage of time you spent on each of the following study techniques (see last page for descriptions and examples). The total percent should add up to 100%.

% of time spent on each technique

Highlighting/ underlining (textbook or notes)

Rereading (textbook or notes)

Imagery for text (forming mental images while reading)

Summarization (textbook or notes)

Elaborative interrogation (explaining why)

Self-explanation (how new info is related to known info)

Practice testing

Other (explain)

Sum 100%

5. Explain your answers above to make it clear how you studied for the exam.

Geology 1020 Prof. Karen Kortz

How You Missed Points Evaluation 5. Estimate how many points (not the percent) you missed for each of the following reasons.

# of points LOST for this reason

Making careless mistakes

Being familiar with terms or vocabulary

Knowing facts

Understanding concepts

Being able to apply concepts in new contexts

Seeing connections among concepts and facts

Other reasons (explain)

How You Will Change Things Evaluation 6. Based on your responses to the questions above and the description of the effectiveness of

different learning techniques, describe in detail three things that you plan to do differently in preparing for the next exam (or, if something worked especially well, write down something that you plan to keep the same). Be specific. Don’t say “understand the information better” but instead say what you are going to do to ensure that you will understand the information better.

What you will do differently to prepare for the next exam Why this will improve your score

7. How will you know when you have mastered the information for each topic and can stop

studying (before taking your next exam!)?

Geology 1020 Prof. Karen Kortz

Learning Outcomes Evaluation 8. Fill in the table below. For each Learning Outcome below, enter in a question number from

the exam that tests that learning outcome. Explain why you chose that question. If there are no questions that test a learning outcome, state so, and include an explanation.

Learning Outcome Question # Explanation Think critically about fundamental concepts in the geologic history of Earth through explaining the issue, providing and interpreting evidence, and making conclusions about implications.

Earth is 4.6 billion years old

Earth is continually changing

Life evolves on a dynamic Earth and continuously modifies Earth

Use the history recorded in rocks to interpret how and why Earth’s past landscapes and life have changed over geologic time.

applying rock formation processes

analyzing (fossilized) animal characteristics and relatedness

applying the theory of plate tectonics

applying the theory of climate change

applying the theory of evolution

applying causes of extinctions

Ask and answer a geology-related research question by applying the process of science.

Examples of the process of science include collecting data, analyzing data, interpreting results, and communicating results.

Geology 1020 Prof. Karen Kortz

Learning Techniques

Learning Technique Description Examples 1. Highlighting/

underlining

Marking potentially important portions of to-be-learned materials while reading

Highlight just the most important points that you want to remember *Helps you possibly remember pieces of information and possibly understand information

2. Rereading Restudying text material again after an initial reading

Reread several days to a week or two after the initial reading *Helps you possibly remember pieces of information and possibly understand information

3. Summarization Writing summaries of to-be-learned texts

Identify the mains point, capture the gist, and exclude unimportant or repetitive material *Helps you remember pieces of information and understand information, if you are good at summarizing

4. Imagery for text Attempting to form mental images of text materials while reading or listening

Imagine the text as pictures or diagrams as you are reading it *Helps you remember pieces of information and understand information, when the text is image friendly

5. Elaborative interrogation

Generating an explanation for why an explicitly stated fact or concept is true

Ask yourself: “Why”, “Why does it make sense that…?”, “Why is this true?” *Helps you remember pieces of information

6. Self-explanation Explaining how new information is related to known information, or explaining steps taken during problem solving

Ask yourself “What does this idea mean to me—what new information does it provide and how does it relate to what I already know?” *Helps you problem solve and understand information

7. Practice testing Self-testing or taking practice tests over to-be-learned material

Create flashcards, answer practice questions, write down from memory everything from text/lecture, draw labeled diagrams, fill in tables of information, re-answer worksheet questions; works best if you practice until you get it right; the more practice testing the better; the more spaced out practice testing is, the better *Helps you remember pieces of information and understand information

8. Distributed practice

Implementing a schedule of practice that spreads out study activities over time

Study the same material spaced ~2-6 days apart for exams (longer and shorter times work as well) *Helps you remember pieces of information and understand information

Learning techniques from Dunlowsky et al., 2013 Research shows the MOST EFFECTIVE learning techniques are: • Practice testing • Distributed practice Research shows the LEAST EFFECTIVE learning techniques are: • Highlighting/underlining • Rereading • Summarization

Geology 1010 Prof. Kortz

Name: ______________________________ Exercise: Evaluating Studying Review the “Learning Techniques” and “Ten Rules of Good (and Bad) Studying” handouts given to you. Based on your performance on the exam, fill in the table below. Include at least 5 comments throughout the table.

STOP KEEP START What are you going to STOP

doing because it isn't working? What are you going to KEEP doing because it is working?

What are you going to START doing because you think it will

help you improve?

This can be done as a ~10 minute in-class activity with student discussion to encourage sharing of strategies.

Neuromyths

Facilitated by Regina Traficante

Can You Identify the Neuromyth?

___Listening to classical music increases reasoning ability.

___Meaningful feedback accelerates learning.

___We only use 10% of our brain.

___A primary indicator of dyslexia is seeing words backwards.

___Maintaining a positive atmosphere in the classroom helps promote learning.

___Stress can impair the ability of the brain to encode and recall memories.

___Individuals learn better when they receive information in their preferred learning styles (e.g. auditory, visual, kinesthetic).

___Some of us are “left-brained” and some are “right-brained” due to hemispheric dominance. This helps explain how we learn.

___Emotions can affect human cognitive processes, including attention, learning and memory, reasoning, and problem-solving.

___Explaining the purpose of a learning activity helps engage students in that activity.

Reflecting on Your Own Teaching

Facilitated by Leslie Dolan and Renee Anderson

TLC Idea Exchange

Friday, February 28, 2019

1:30-3 p.m.

Reflecting on Your Teaching

Self-Reflection, Developmental Education, and Professional Development

Report from CAPR Conference, November 2019

One way to help faculty reflect on their own effectiveness with developmental students is through professional development.

We often gain professional development through attending conferences. One conference focused on aiding faculty with developmental students and developmental courses in higher education is CAPR, Center for Postsecondary Readiness, from Columbia University’s Teachers College

What is CAPR? From the CAPR website: https://postsecondaryreadiness.org/about/

The Center for the Analysis of Postsecondary Readiness (CAPR) is a research center funded by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education’s Institute of Education Sciences to study developmental education and provide evidence for promising reforms. Established in 2014, CAPR is a partnership of two organizations—the Community College Research Center (CCRC) at Teachers College, Columbia University, and MDRC—as well as additional research scholars from several universities.

Why Study Developmental Education?

Developmental education is designed to bring underprepared college students up to speed in math or English so they can succeed in college-level courses. While it makes sense to give students an opportunity to catch up, the way developmental education is currently designed can hurt rather than help their chances of getting a college degree.

Federal data indicate that 68 percent of community college students and 40 percent of students at public four-year colleges take at least one developmental course. Many are assigned to multiple semesters of developmental courses, delaying their entry into courses that count toward a college degree or discouraging them from their studies altogether. In one study, only 11 percent of students assigned to three or more levels of developmental math completed those courses and went on to pass their first college-level math course. The number for reading was 29 percent. In addition, research has found that the standardized placement tests commonly used to determine if students need developmental help place many students in developmental courses who could have done well in college-level courses.

What CAPR Does

CAPR researchers are conducting several studies examining developmental education, and our website is a centralized source of research on promising practices and policies, providing news and links from around the nation. CAPR researchers engage with the field at conferences and workshops nationwide and through the CAPR blog. Our 2017 annual convening focused on the relationship between research and policy.

Our 2019 conference brought together researchers, educators, and policymakers from around the country to discuss the future of developmental education reform.

What did they report about faculty professional development? Throughout many of the workshops at the CAPR conference, a common idea emerged; faculty professional development is alive and well across the country.

On many campuses, there are actual professional development centers established to help faculty. On other campuses, like CCRI, there are organizations like TLC to support faculty.

1. Why is teacher self-reflection so important, especially when dealing with underprepared college students?

2. For today’s idea exchange activity, let’s start by addressing ways that we are already supporting faculty in their pursuit of professional development and self-reflection.

3. What are some obstacles that we face about getting professional development to help us with our self-reflection?

4. Can you think of any new ways we can support faculty self-reflection through professional development?

"10 Reflective Questions for Teachers to Use Every Day." Wabi Sabi Learning, wabisabilearning.com/blogs/mindfulness-wellbeing/reflective-questions-teachers. Accessed 28 Feb. 2020.

10 Reflective Questions for Teachers to Use Every Day Be even better tomorrow than you were today, (and you were awesome!)

For a long time, we’ve advocated the use of reflective questions with our learners as a way for them to debrief their learning processes in the classroom to improve and grow. This is just as useful a practice for teachers as it is for learners because in many ways teachers are still learners themselves.

What self-reflective questions can teachers use for the same purposes? We’ve got some ideas in this post. First, though, let’s talk about why self-reflection is so crucial a practice in teaching, learning, and life.

Someone once asked veteran actor Sidney Poitier what his biggest goal in life was. He responded by saying, “to simply wake up every morning a better person than when I went to bed.” How does one actually do this, actually wake up better than they were the day before?

Keep in mind this is the Academy Award-winning superstar who was told by a casting director after his first audition that he should give up and go wash dishes for a living. What Poitier can teach us here is that a big part of benefiting from self-reflection is in having the proper attitude.

Let’s be clear about one thing: whatever you may be, the only one who can dictate your attitude about anything is you. Pinpointing our positions and outlook on our experiences is what reflective questioning is all about.

Why We Reflect (Or Should Probably Start)

We don’t debrief to punish ourselves or succumb to another’s opinion of who we are or what we can do. Reflective questions allow us to see past negativity and circumstance and ask ourselves, “how can I do even better next time?”

Ultimately, we do a grave disservice to our students as teachers if we deny them the opportunity to use reflective questions for self-assessment and improvement. By the same token, we must give ourselves permission to do the same thing.

When it comes to a profession as challenging as teaching is, asking the right self-reflective questions can help you determine many useful things including:

• what works and doesn’t work in your classroom

• where your biggest challenges are and how to overcome them • how you can improve professional development • what you are most fearful of in your profession and how to face it • where you are bringing undue stress upon yourself • how you can better foster relationships with learners/parents/administrators/colleagues • These are only a few examples of the insights teachers can gain from using self-reflection.

10 Reflective Questions for Teachers to Use

Begin in earnest to use these reflective questions for teachers as both a meditative practice and an active pathway to being better than you were the day before.

1. What was my best moment today and how can I have more moments like it? This question is a great one to start with because it ensures your reflection begins on a positive note. Think back to that moment and who experienced it with you—students, colleagues, or both? How was it equally enriching for them to be a part of? Once you’ve nailed it down, think about how it happened and how you can have as many similar experiences as possible.

2. What was my most challenging moment and why? How will I respond next time? Asking this question may be a tough one to relive, but it benefits you to reflect on it briefly. Be sure not to live in that moment—accept it for what it was, which was an opportunity for you to learn something. Once you determine the lesson, you’ll get better at weathering the storm when these moments come along.

3. Were my students excited to be in class? If not, what can I do to change this? Learning is a journey that students should enjoy every day because that’s how being a lifelong learner happens. What are you doing to make sure that your students anticipate coming to your class every day, and counting the moments until they return? This is about challenging them with activities that appeal to their creative natures, and that connect content with experiences and issues that are relevant to their interests.

4. How was my mood with others today and how can I improve it? It’s a good practice to get in the habit of reflecting on this regularly. Of all the reflective questions for teachers to ask, this one ranks among the most vital. Why? Because your entire profession is based on interacting with others, all day and every day. As a result, the moods

you experience translate to everything you do and everyone you talk to. Reflect on how all your interactions went and how they could be better.

5. How well did I communicate with others today and how can I do this better? This question goes along with the one above. Again, teaching is a profession based on effective communication. It’s one of those skills that we’re building on all the time the more we connect with people. Do your best to be a great communicator, especially in digital or non-personal communications. Here are some tips for getting your point across succinctly and professionally.

6. In what ways did my students surprise me most today? We enjoy posing this question to the educators we work with, only because their answers make us very happy. Teachers are consistently blown away by what their students can accomplish when they find the courage to step aside and facilitate them in finding their own learning pathways. How did your learners blow you away today?

7. How did I support my colleagues today and how will I continue to do so? Teaching is a tough business for the best of us, and we’re all in it together. Some of you will handle challenging times better than others. Reflect on what you did, and what you can do, to contribute to the sense of community in your school through the professional support network you are an essential part of.

8. What are the biggest obstacles to improving my practice and how will I overcome them? As you continue with your professional development, there will always be hurdles to overcome. Maybe it’s time, which can be the enemy of all teachers. Perhaps it's inconvenient scheduling of a workshop or conference you want to attend or even a lack of funding. Whatever the case may be, there’s usually a way to develop your craft with some careful planning and moving around of things when necessary.

9. What did I do today for myself and why is this important? Something many teachers don’t do often enough is to take care of their own needs. This is understandable since your days are spent seeing to the needs of others. Nevertheless, strive as much as possible to make time for your own needs—your students, colleagues, and your practice will benefit.

10. What do I want everyone to be able to say about me?

At the end of the day, everyone who crosses your path will always remember how they felt being in your space. You’re in the perfect position to inspire people and make them feel better for coming your way. You don’t have to be the model colleague or the“cool” teacher every kid wants. In the end, you just have to be the best person you can be no matter what comes your way. Rest assured, it’s enough.

Where Transformation Begins

You have more strength than you realize and more support than you know, but in the end, change starts with you. Practice using these self-reflective questions as much as possible and watch how your teaching practices, your relationships, and your outlook all transform for the better.

Of course, asking better questions isn't just about self-exploration. By providing essential questions that push our learners to excel, we can provide them with the best learning experiences they've ever had. Begin here with one of our most popular resources, the Essential Guide to Essential Questions. You'll find all you need for understanding, developing, and assessing essential questions.

Stay curious, stay eager, and be better than you were yesterday.

SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) Research

Facilitated by Justine Egan-Kunicki

TLC Idea Exchange – February 28, 2020, 1:30-3pm – Creating Opportunities for Self-Reflection

Thinking About SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) – Justine N. Egan-Kunicki, Ph.D.

TLC Idea Exchange – February 28, 2020, 1:30-3pm

Creating Opportunities for Self-Reflection

Thinking About SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning)

Justine N. Egan-Kunicki, Ph.D.

What is SoTL and why is it important?

“SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) is the study of teaching and learning and the

communication of findings so that a body of knowledge can be established (Bishop-Clark & Dietz-Uhler,

2012).”

SoTL can be useful, as it not only allows you to demonstrate that the work you do in the classroom is

effective (for promotion purposes) but it can also provide opportunities for networking with colleagues both

within and outside of the college.

Questions for Idea Exchange Discussion

Have you heard of SoTL before? If so, what experience do you have with SoTL?

What are some of the barriers to engaging in SoTL?

What ideas would you like to potentially examine in your classroom?

SoTL in My Own Classroom

Often, people believe that they must publish a scholarly research article for it to qualify as SoTL. SoTL

is defined much more broadly, especially in teaching focused circles where teaching tips, presenting at

conferences (with or without data), or leading workshops are all examples of SoTL.

Some ways in which you can do this are as follows:

In my Social Psychology course, I have students write about a social issue and discuss it from both news

and research perspectives. At the National Institute for the Teaching of Psychology (NITOP), I

presented a poster discussing this assignment and student perceptions as it related to their learning.

You can also give more formal presentations without data at some teaching conferences. I attended a

conference with a colleague where we presented about our use of iClicker in the classroom for the

General Psychology course.

You can also share about techniques you use in your class during TLC events (e.g., Idea Exchanges,

Spring Symposium)!

Reference

Bishop-Clark, C. & Dietz-Uhler, B. (2012). Engaging in the scholarship of teaching and

learning: A guide to the process, and how to develop a project from start to finish. Sterling,

Virginia: Stylus Publishing LLC.

TLC Idea Exchange – February 28, 2020, 1:30-3pm – Creating Opportunities for Self-Reflection

Thinking About SoTL (Scholarship of Teaching and Learning) – Justine N. Egan-Kunicki, Ph.D.

Steps to Using SoTL

Rowland and Myatt (2013) created a “how-to” guide for getting started with SoTL. They suggest the

following steps:

STEP 1: Idea

o What is a “problem” in your teaching? This problem is not meant be avoided but rather possess

an opportunity for exploration! Is there a new (or old) technique you would like to examine in a

more systematic way?

o Conduct a literature review to see how this has been studied previously

o Ask your colleagues for their input and experiences!

STEP 2: Find Context

o Find an accessible sample – this may mean using just your own courses or collaborating with a

colleague

STEP 3: Design Study

o What methods will you use?

o Is there funding for this type of work in your field?

STEP 4: Ethics

o Put together your IRB (Institutional Review Board) application and complete ethics training,

potentially in collaboration with TLC if you have questions!

STEP 5: Prepare for Implementation

o Finalize any necessary materials (e.g., rubrics, surveys, informed consent, etc.)

STEP 6: Implement

o Implement all tools and procedures

STEP 7: Examine In-Progress Results

o You may conduct initial analyses part way through and make changes as needed

STEP 8: Analyze Results

o Analyze data using appropriate methods – this may involve collaborating with someone with

more statistical training if that is not your background

STEP 9: Disseminate and Critically Reflect

o Share results with colleagues at CCRI and in your field (e.g., conferences, academic paper, etc.)

Reference

Rowland, S.L., & Myatt, P.M. (2013). Getting started in the scholarship of teaching and learning: A

“how to” guide for science academics. Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education, 42(1), 6-

14. DOI:10.1002/bmb.20748

Article

Susan L. Rowland†*

Paula M. Myatt‡

From the †School of Chemistry and Molecular Biosciences Faculty ofScience, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia, ‡Teaching andEducational Development Institute, University of Queensland,Brisbane, Australia

Abstract

SoTL stands for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning.

The acronym, said “sottle” or “sote—all,” describes research

that involves rigorous examination of teaching and learning

by faculty who are actively involved in the educational pro-

cess. The number of natural-science faculty engaged in SoTL

is increasing, and their important work has broad implica-

tions for the measurement and improvement of college

teaching and learning outcomes. The data show, however,

that many faculty who conduct SoTL projects in science

departments begin their education research careers with no

training in SoTL research methodologies, and find they are

working alone, with few colleagues who can nurture (or even

understand) their efforts. In this article we provide a guide

intended to help natural-science faculty initiate SoTL projects

while they negotiate the mechanics and politics of develop-

ing and maintaining a SoTL research program in a science

department. VC 2013 by The International Union of Biochemis-

try and Molecular Biology, 42(1):6–14, 2014

Keywords: integration of research into undergraduate teaching;

mentoring; methods of science education research; teaching and

learning techniques methods and approaches

Introduction“There are professors on every campus who are lookingclosely at their students’ learning, redesigning their coursesand programs, and coming together to share what they’velearned with others. Broadly speaking, these are the facultywho are engaged in what is now widely called the scholar-ship of teaching and learning.”

This quote from Hutchings, Huber, and Ciccone [1] sumsup the ethos and practice of the Scholarship of Teachingand Learning (SoTL). The examination of one’s own teachingis a hallmark of SoTL. Teaching and learning scholars can“treat their classrooms and programs as a source of inter-esting questions about learning; find ways to explore andshed light on these questions; use this evidence in designingand refining new activities, assignments, and assessments;and share what they’ve found with colleagues who can com-ment, critique, and build on new insights.” [2].

College faculty who are science-trained, but engaged ineducation research, are called Science Faculty with educa-tion specialties, or SFES [3]. Their numbers are increasingthrough both (i) migration of academics from “disciplinebased” research to SoTL work and (ii) specific hires of fac-ulty with education specialties [1, 3–5]. A recent US-basedstudy [3] shows that in the last decade more SFES havebeen hired than in all previous years combined. It alsoshows that fewer than 50% of these faculties have formaltraining in Science Education or SoTL research methodolo-gies [3]. This means that many SFES are beginning theirSoTL research careers with “only” a pure science back-ground to support their education research.

SFES are being hired to both teach and conduct scienceeducation studies in fields such as biomedicine, physiology,biology, chemistry, biochemistry and molecular biology,and microbiology at a wide variety of tertiary institutiontypes [3]. Despite their increasing numbers, many SFESfind that their work is not strongly supported by colleagues,administrators, academic development structures, andextant promotion pathways [4–6]. SFES are also oftenworking as the only education researcher in their depart-ment [3]. This isolation, combined with the lack of trainingin SoTL, may well be contributing factors to the high ratesof disenchantment reported amongst these faculty [3].

*Address for correspondence to: School of Chemistry and MolecularBiosciences, University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia. E-mail:s.rowland1@uq.edu.au.Received 20 August 2013; Revised 27 September 2013;DOI 10.1002/bmb.20748Published online in Wiley Online Library(wileyonlinelibrary.com)

Getting Started in the Scholarship of Teaching

and Learning: A “How to” Guide for Science

Academics

6 Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education

The authors of this essay are natural scientists who,like many other SFES, have migrated from bench researchto SoTL and academic development. One (Rowland) is abiochemist turned SFES, while the other (Myatt) is a micro-biologist turned academic developer. In this article we pro-vide a guide intended to help new SFES hires negotiate thestart of their SoTL research careers, while also informinginterested observers about the kinds of work done by SFES.

Why is this Guide Useful?There are many resources available to help academics doSoTL, write up their work, and disseminate it. These willbe discussed later in this article. This guide is intended tocover an area that is under-addressed in the literature—the mechanics and politics of getting started and continuingSoTL in a natural-science department. Because SoTL andits methodologies are quite alien to many natural scientists,the faculty member who is newly hired as an SFES, or whostarts working in the SoTL sphere, can be an object of sus-picion. In extreme cases the faculty member can be margi-nalized or discounted as a legitimate researcher; therequirement to do scholarly work can even be omitted fromtheir position description [7]. There is evidence to suggestthat SFES are less likely to be placed on the tenure track,particularly in the biologies [3]—one factor that may feedinto this is the perceived (or actual) lack of “research”papers from SFES. There are, however, many opportunitiesfor the SFES to have a research output in SoTL—both asinvestigators of their own teaching contexts, and as men-tors to colleagues. This guide lays out a simple roadmapdesigned to help jump-start the research program of anSFES who has little or no training in SoTL. In addition, weidentify barriers that we have found new SFES hiresencounter with their research programs, and suggestpotential ways forward.

We also intend this guide to be useful for the academicwho wants to know “what SoTL is about” in the sciences.This audience includes academics curious about the work oftheir SFES colleagues and those who may even be consider-ing implementing a science education study themselves. Wehope this guide provides a structured framework and aclear, guided approach to a slightly foreign area of research.

We begin by addressing how a researcher chooses,structures, and begins a SoTL project, then move on to waysin which SoTL practice can be improved. We then addressmechanisms for sharing SoTL outcomes and building a pro-fessional profile, and conclude with a discussion of “how tomake SoTL work” as a career path in a science department.

Choosing and Structuring a SoTL Research Project

There are many excellent resources available that defineand describe SoTL and its methodologies [8–10]. (Note: Wewill use the terms “SoTL” and “education research”interchangeably to describe discipline-based, scholarlyexamination of teaching and learning with an associateddissemination of findings.) There are some common SoTL

genres; and they are dealt with very effectively on this web-site [11]. Reading these resources provides an excellentgrounding in SoTL theory and practice.

Perhaps the very first place to start engaging withSoTL, however, is to examine one’s own teaching, environ-ment, and educational goals for SoTL opportunities. PatHutchings’s “Approaching the Scholarship of Teaching andLearning” [12] and Randy Bass’s “The Scholarship ofTeaching: What’s the problem” [13] are both seminal textsthat help the new SoTL practitioner examine the researchpotential of their own context.

Anyone who is a reflective, scholarly teacher is alreadyimplementing Action Research in their classroom [14]. SoTLdoesn’t differ, in purpose, from Scholarly Teaching or itera-tive Action Research—all three activities aim to improveteaching and learning. The pragmatic difference between thethree is that only SoTL involves dissemination of the findingsfor the benefit of the scholarly community at large. The aca-demic difference is that while Scholarly Teaching and ActionResearch can be informal and somewhat ad-hoc, SoTL isexpected to adhere to the standards of quality scholarship.

Glassick et al. [15] have defined quality works of schol-arship as having “a common sequence of unfolding stages.”They are:

1. Clear goals2. Adequate preparation3. Appropriate methods4. Significant results5. Effective presentation6. Reflective critique

In Fig. 1 we have mapped these stages onto a modelSoTL project sequence. This model project is simple, andwe have chosen this framework because it represents theimportant steps in an educational intervention (such as theintroduction and evaluation of a new learning activity in aclass). This is the type of SoTL activity one would expect anovice SoTL researcher to attempt. More experienced SFESmight attempt holistic reviews of (and large-scale changesto) programs. This type of activity is not adequatelyaddressed by the model we have shown here.

There are several items of note in this figure. A clearsequence of staged events runs from top to bottom, and crit-ical items that should occur at each stage are shown. Impor-tantly, later items cannot be attempted until the earlier oneshave been completed. We will use the staged events in thisdiagram as a scaffold for the remainder of the essay.

Starting with an IdeaDeveloping a Research Question

As Randy Bass says [13], the very core of SoTL is to rede-fine the word “problem.” Something that is a “problem” inyour teaching (or in the teaching of a peer) is not some-thing to be sidelined, or avoided. Instead, it is an avenuefor exploration—a “problem” is a research opportunity.

Rowland 7

Careful “problematizing” of one’s practice allows the build-ing of a solid, testable research question with clearlydefined and measurable independent and dependentvariables.

For example, let’s consider the “problem” of studentsin first year biology who are still not learning how to builda taxonomy, even though this has been taught in a lecturetwice. One could problematize this issue and turn it into aresearch project, with a research question. Let’s also con-sider that an SFES would like to add clickers into the class-room in an effort to fix this learning deficit.

A weak research question about this “problem” mightask “Can I use clickers in my class to improve learning?”This question contains an independent and a dependent vari-able, but the context of the independent variable (“clickers inmy class”) is poorly defined, while the dependent variable(“learning”) is so vague that it may not even be measurable.In addition, the overall question “Can I use clickers to achievemy outcome” is always going to yield the equivocal answer of“yes, probably, depending on variables x, y, and z.”

In contrast, a good question for the same study mightbe “Does including clicker questions with taxonomic-puzzle

Stages and considerations in a model SoTL project. The sequence of staged events is shown in the green boxes and

arrows. These stages can be grouped as “preimplementation” (blue highlight), “during implementation” (yellow high-

light), and “postimplementation” (pink highlight). Activities that bridge the ends of iterations are shown with an orange

highlight. These activities are not essential for an individual SoTL project, but they help with sustainability of initiatives

and design of later SoTL projects. It is important to maintain contact with implementers and stakeholders and inform

them of progress at all stages of the project. Other critical items that should be completed at each stage are shown in

red boxes. The six criteria for quality scholarship are shown as grey boxes—they are aligned with the stages where

they are most relevant, however they may extend over other sections of the project lifetime.

FIG 1

Biochemistry andMolecular Biology Education

8 Getting Started in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

content in an introductory biology module improve studentability to categorize animals using a taxonomic key?” Nowwe see what, exactly, is being included as the independentvariable, and what is being measured as the dependentchange. We can obtain a yes or no answer, and we canimplement appropriate pre-post tests to measure the extentof the change.

It is possible to ask various types of SoTL researchquestions, depending on the institutional, curricular, orclassroom context being addressed. At all stages it is help-ful to keep the stakeholders in mind; students, employers,academics, the university, general staff, and the widercommunity are all stakeholders. From a political perspec-tive, the SFES’s own students, department, and college oruniversity are key stakeholders. The effects and value ofeducational initiatives for all of these parties are different.Their needs and viewpoints provide multiple avenues forexploration.

One should also consider when in the life of an educa-tional intervention a question can be asked, and what typesof questions are appropriate at each point of an interven-tion. A well-tested heuristic model for making this decisionis shown in Fig. 2 [16].

Before the initiative begins there are important“context” questions to be investigated. These include dis-cussions of why an initiative is important for various stake-holders, meta-analyses of previously published work toestablish “best practice,” and an examination of criticalfactors that affect implementation.

During any initiative one can ask “process” questions.Often these relate to the mechanics of how the initiative isactually implemented, with particular emphasis on curric-ulum design and pedagogical approaches. Again, relatingthese processes to the needs and interests of the stake-holders, and hence demonstrating that the initiative hasgeneral value for practitioners, makes the work morepublishable.

At completion of the initiative it is possible to ask“immediate-impact” questions related to the summativeevaluation of the initiative. They may address learninggains, stakeholder satisfaction with the initiative, andthings that could be improved in the next iteration. Beyondthe immediate end of an initiative one can ask “long-termimpact” questions, particularly those related to verticalintegration, skill and knowledge retention, and graduateoutcomes [16].

Conducting an Advance Literature Review

Any SoTL project must begin with a literature review. Aresearcher may find that their idea has already beentested, or more likely, the literature will yield relatedresearch that helps refine the study hypotheses and meth-odology. A literature review allows the researcher to exam-ine journals that publish in their area of interest, and “findtheir place in the conversation.” The research can then bepositioned so it is maximally important to the prospectiveaudience. Some SoTL literature is listed under PubMed,however much of it is not. Google Scholar [17], ERIC [18],Web of Knowledge [19], and JSTOR [20] are the four pri-mary online access points for education literature.

Finding a ContextUsing Accessible Cohorts for Study

This may seem obvious, but it is still important. Wheneverpossible, academics should use their own teaching activitiesas the basis of their research. This practice saves time, andguarantees that any educational innovations or assess-ments will happen in a situation that the researcher canaccess and control.

Working on courses that are controlled by other facultymembers can be difficult. It can be problematic to negotiateand oversee all the details of project implementation ifsomeone else has responsibility for the class. Collaboratorscan suddenly withdraw their consent for work with theirstudents, accidentally fail to implement the ethics compli-ance components of the investigation, or lose interest in aproject because they become overwhelmed with otherresponsibilities. There is also a real danger of creating badfeeling between colleagues if a SoTL implementation goespoorly or the students respond negatively to the innovation,especially if the colleague was pushed into the implementa-tion in the first place. We advise our readers to proceedwith caution if they are innovating and doing SoTL on acourse that they do not teach themselves.

Designing the StudyStructuring a Project Using Brown’s Questions

Brown’s Questions [21] provide a template for any projectfrom start to finish. They force the researcher to focus theirresearch question, simplify ideas, state goals and findingssuccinctly, and assess the value of the work. AddressingBrown’s questions during the initial project design makes iteasier to decide which data should be collected so that a

Heuristic model for the development of research

questions associated with an educational initia-

tive (adapted from Hubball and Clarke, 2010 [16]).

The model depicts an educational initiative or

intervention, flanked by pre- and postinitiative

time periods. The intervention begins and ends

at the initiation and completion points. The

arrows on the oval indicate the iterative nature of

the intervention, which may be repeated with or

without variation. Particular types of questions

are appropriate for each numbered point.

FIG 2

Rowland 9

pertinent and complete set of evidence is available at theend of the study. Brown’s Questions will also help definethe end-point in a study, so data collection can stop andwriting can begin.

Perhaps the most important of Brown’s questions is“What can you add to practice?” A researcher is bestplaced to answer this if they have a good knowledge of theliterature and the currently-funded educational initiativesin their field.

Obtaining Project Funding and Hiring Help

It is very difficult for one, lone academic to do all the workrequired for good SoTL. New SFES should seek out funding,starting with their institutional grants system. We all dodesign and innovation as part of our regular course devel-opment, but the big additional time commitments comewhen we want to analyze the effectiveness of the innova-tion and publish our results. These time commitments arenot usually “appreciated” by one’s department, and it isvery unusual to see them factored into an academic’sworkload. With this in mind, an undergraduate researchassistant is a valuable hire. This student can help with lit-erature searches, data analysis, statistical analysis, anddigitization of ethics records (e.g., scanning the 1,200informed consent forms from a freshman chemistry class).

Of course the amount of support money needed willdepend on the size of the project. A large project will needa bigger grant and, if possible, a professional project offi-cer, (who becomes the organizational heart of the studyand is worth their weight in publications). Funding is alsoneeded to cover travel costs for attending SoTL conferen-ces, disseminating the findings of the research, and engag-ing new collaborators for the next project.

EthicsObtaining Ethics Clearance

An academic can do classroom Action Research for perso-nal teaching and curriculum improvement without ethicsapproval, but ethics considerations are key to SoTL publi-cation [22]. Generally, projects that lack an ethics clear-ance cannot be published or publicly presented.

Ethics approval is needed for the project “mechanics”(e.g., questions used in surveys, participant recruitmentand compensation, data deidentification and storage) andmost ethics review committees will also look closely at theproject design to establish that it does not advantage orunfairly exclude particular groups of students. With this inmind, it is important to concede that it is almost impossibleto conduct a “controlled” SoTL study, where students areequally matched, segregated into control and treatmentgroups, then assessed after they have (or have not) beensubjected to an educational intervention. Obviously thiskind of design has significant potential to advantage (or dis-advantage) groups of students who have not been given achoice over their fate. This is unfair and unethical, and ithas no place in good educational practice.

After ethics approval is granted, and before the studybegins, it is essential to get informed consent from all studysubjects (including students in regular classes being ana-lyzed). Subjects who do not agree cannot be included in thestudy pool, but they must still be allowed to participate inthe activity if it is part of their curriculum and/or likely toimprove their learning.

The initial approval for a project can take some time toachieve. Before writing an application, we recommend thatresearchers call their ethics officer and discuss the project.This allows early flagging and resolution of issues. OtherSoTL academics are usually happy to share their ethicsapplications; they can also give valuable advice on how toadhere to institutional and national ethics guidelines.

We strongly recommend that any researcher gainsethics approval BEFORE their study begins, rather thanattempting to gain it retrospectively. Retroactive approvalis occasionally granted, but it is only likely if the partici-pants signed an informed consent at the time of data col-lection or the data were collected as part of normal class-room assessment (e.g., exam results, or enrolmentdemographics).

Implementing and AnalysingIt is beyond the scope of this essay to describe all the possi-ble options for implementation and analysis of SoTL proj-ects. Clearly they will be context and question dependent.Instead, we can offer some advice about how to learn aboutthe methods and options for SoTL studies.

Learning How to do SoTL Through Formal Training,

Mentorship, and Collaboration

It is possible to clamber up the steep SoTL learning curvealone, but SoTL is much easier to master if one can takelessons. Most educational institutions offer courses inTeaching and Learning, including research-driven diplomasand higher degrees in Education. The completion of such aprogram by a faculty member tends to be seen very posi-tively by science departments, and some tertiary educationinstitutions are now mandating that new hires have (orquickly gain) a teaching qualification before they beginwork in the classroom.

Most educational institutions also have an academicdevelopment team who help academics improve their prac-tice as scholarly teachers and SoTL researchers. In ourinstitution the team members also run teaching evalua-tions, administer teaching awards, and provide advice onlearning technologies [23].

Professional societies also run SoTL programs. Onewonderful place for faculty to be mentored in SoTL is theAmerican Society for Microbiology (ASM) Biology scholarsprogram [24]. Another program is the International Insti-tute for SoTL Scholars and Mentors [25]. We also recom-mend the website of the Carnegie Foundation for theAdvancement of Teaching [26] which maintains a valuableset of teaching publications under the “Resources” tab.

Biochemistry andMolecular Biology Education

10 Getting Started in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

One should not mentally limit “mentoring” options tothose bounded by the traditional notion of a singleapprentice-expert pair. Successful academics have a con-stellation of mentors, including “publication” mentors (tohelp maintain a focus on writing and publishing) and“peer” mentors (who share challenges and support eachother to success) [27]. In the past 5 years the science SoTLcommunity has become increasingly organized and able toself-mentor through grant-funded organizations. In theUSA and Australia the SEI (Science Education Initiative)[28], PULSE (Partnership for Undergraduate Life SciencesEducation) [29], SABER (Society for the Advancement ofBiology Education Research) [30], SaMnet (Science andMathematics Network of Australian university educators)[31], CUBENET (Collaborative Universities Biomedical Edu-cation Network) [32], and VIBEnet (Vision and Innovationin Biology Education network) [33] all recruit interestedSoTL academics in the sciences, hold regular meetings, andpost helpful documents on their websites. HERDSA (HigherEducation Research and Development Society of Austral-asia) [34] is not a science-focused organization; howevermembers of the HERDSA Fellows program [35] mentornew potential fellows as they document their SoTL work.

New SFES should seek collaborators with the relevantand complimentary skill-set to tackle their project. It’scommon for SFES to feel isolated, as most of their depart-mental colleagues will not be versed in SoTL methodologiesor language. Faculty in the arts, psychology, and educationdepartments, however, probably do have expertise inassessment of learning, and their expertise is invaluable tothe new SFES hire.

Collaboration can grow organically with co-workers,but it can also be achieved more formally through anaction learning set [21] or a formal Community of Practice[36]. In SoTL, action learning sets are small groups of peo-ple who review one another’s work in a face-to-face forumon a regular basis. Communities of Practice are “groups ofpeople who share a concern or a passion for somethingthey do and learn how to do it better as they interact regu-larly” [37]. In both cases group members become moreexpert as they spend time working towards a common goalof publication.

Learning How to Use Qualitative Methods and Accept-

ing the Validity of Alternative Truths

Perhaps the most wrenching transition that a natural sci-entist will have to complete as they move into SoTL is theswitch from a positivist, reductionist, and realist outlook toone that allows for context-constructed realities. This lay-man’s terms, this means we can no longer attempt to findthe one final “truth” about a closely-studied and carefullycontrolled experimental situation. Instead, we must learnto evaluate a series of events wholistically, and accept thatthere are many truths, and many different lived experien-ces for the participants in any situation. These shifting

landscapes are often best investigated using qualitativemethods, rather than empirical ones.

There are multiple reference texts that explain qualita-tive methods, the processes for applying them and, impor-tantly, the different approaches to data analysis (we recom-mend [38–44] as a start). The hallmark of scienceeducation SoTL is a mixed-methods approach, where quali-tative methods such as grounded theory, discourse andnarrative analysis, ethnography, phenomenography, andclassroom observation (see [45] for an elaboration) arecombined with semi-empirical methods that generate dis-crete data sets. In some instances the research question isbest served by correlating discrete data from a SoTL study(e.g., the scores on an exam) with categorical data from astudy group (e.g., gender or minority status). In such casesstatistics (especially factor analysis) is often used to extractthe meaningful relationships between elements of the data.

Having a statistician as a collaborator is enormouslyvaluable. Apart from the obvious benefit to the project’sdata analysis, a statistician can evaluate whether a projectis feasible and help design a better study from the groundup. For example, the size of a class and the likely participa-tion rate for the cohort affect sample n. Attempts to show astatistically significant result from a study group with asmall n will likely require data from more than one cohort,perhaps for a number of years. In this situation a mixed-methods approach that includes an ethnographic or phe-nomenological examination of the problem may produce amore rapid (and a more informative) publication.

Disseminating Research ResultsConferences

Dissemination is key in SoTL, and conference presentationsare the “gold standard.” The International Society for theScholarship of Teaching and Learning [46] was the firstSoTL society. ISSOTL members are not just interested inscience education, so their conferences have a diverserange of presentations. The work may not all be to theSFES scholar’s taste, but ISSOTL is an important confer-ence and the diversity of the work is inspiring. Most of theother organizations listed under “Learning how to do SoTL”also run meetings on a regular basis.

A new SoTL researcher should not be daunted byapplying for a talk or poster at one of these meetings. Othereducation researchers are usually very accommodating ofspeculative or incomplete work and their feedback isextremely helpful for formulating further studies orimproving data analysis and presentation.

Journals and Other Publication Opportunities

Like science journals, SoTL journals are subject to rankings[46–49]. It is not always best to go for high-impact journalswhile establishing a publication record. Some SoTL jour-nals can have long lead times (exceeding 4 years fromacceptance to publication), and the papers that areaccepted in high-impact journals tend to report studies that

Rowland 11

are very well developed. Unfortunately, by the time thepaper sees the light of day, the work can be very “old,”particularly when publications are needed to get grantsand build a reputation for attracting collaborations. Askeditors about lead times, rejection rates, and online prepu-blication options (with a DOI) before submission, or consultthe annotated lists of SoTL journals.

New readers of the SoTL literature may be bamboozledby some of the language of education research. Take heart,and don’t assume that published papers with complex lan-guage are filled with complex ideas—they might just bewritten unclearly! There is no need to use complex lan-guage to explain SoTL ideas and the new SoTL scholarwould be wise to read and submit to journals that theyunderstand and feel comfortable with, rather than choosingjournals with a style far removed from their own voice.

Early career SFES can test the waters with publicationsin the journal run by their disciplinary body or local scienceeducation association. A publication here will probably bea quicker and easier addition to the CV. These fora arealso a good place to meet and influence peers in one’s field.Regular publications in these journals may lead to invita-tions to be on the editorial board, to collaborate, or to pres-ent at conferences.

It’s also useful for new scholars to consider newslettersand non-peer-reviewed publications that are widely read intheir field and/or published by their relevant professionalsociety. Although they don’t have an “impact factor,” (sothey don’t count towards formal publication outputs) theyare quick to write, and a case can be made for their valueas instances of community engagement and disciplinaryservice.

How to Make SoTL Work as a Research StreamBuilding a SoTL Research Stream by Staking Out an

“Academic Patch”

SoTL is time-consuming, and learning how to do it is alsocomplex. Hence, it is important to set aside protectedresearch time to properly plan, implement, and evaluateSoTL projects. In our experience, many science departmentcolleagues get excited when they discover educationresearch, and they begin to propose multiple new andinteresting projects to their “local” SFES. This can becomeoverwhelming, and at some point the researcher has to say“No” to running additional SoTL studies. We suggest threeuseful methods for justifying this refusal.

The first is to define a research focus. Once aresearcher begins work in the SoTL field it is importantthat they define a theme for their work fairly quickly(within the first 3 years). This theme should be expressiblein one sentence. For example, a researcher might work on“engaging undergraduate students with science throughscience communication” or “strategies to assess andimprove critical thinking in graduate students” or

“structures of study programs that enhance minority par-ticipation and retention.”

In any of these cases the researcher has claimed an“area” or academic patch, and this process influences howthey see themselves, and how others see their work [50].SoTL researchers are entitled to say “No, I’m sorry but thatproject is not in my field of interest or expertise.” Ofcourse, this does not mean than a SoTL researcher is enti-tled to shirk the normal responsibilities that come alongwith being part of an academic community—it simplymeans that, like any other academic, a SoTL researcherhas their own research stream.

The second strategy for saying “no” is to offer to men-tor the enthusiastic colleague in their SoTL endeavor, or tooffer co-supervision of a research assistant or student whocan make a significant contribution to the project. Mentor-ing activity is an excellent way to build collegiality andimprove the skills and publication outputs of all parties.The SFES mentor should, however, take careful stock ofhow much time and expertise they can contribute to theproject and clearly discuss these limits with theircollaborator.

The third strategy for saying “no” is to offer to leadwork on the project at a wider level, through service to thecommittee and governance structure of the college or uni-versity. SFES have an important role to play in the proc-esses of curriculum and assessment design, and the bestway to influence these activities is through official chan-nels, rather than just as a personal endeavor.

Staying Current with the Conversation

Once a researcher enters the SoTL stream they quicklyrealize that the current is swift. There is a real danger thatone can work on an outmoded idea or context, and getstuck in an unproductive or unpublishable research whirl-pool. There are various methods for staying current withrelevant SoTL fields. Most SoTL societies publish newslet-ters or produce regular electronic mailouts and listservs.The “Tomorrow’s Professor” listserv [51] posts twice aweek and has an impressive archive of useful articles aboutteaching on its website. Subscribing to contents alerts forjournals is also a must. Wiley and Springer Alerts are goodplaces to start [52, 53].

The “areas of research” in SoTL [54] become more orless fashionable with time. They are heavily influenced by(i) the areas of strategic interest defined by local grantingbodies; (ii) reports to the President (in the USA); and (iii)reports commissioned by bodies or groups that have powerin the administration of science education (examples arethe Australian Council of Deans of Sciences, The AustralianOffice of Learning and Teaching, the National ScienceFoundation, and the American Association for the Advance-ment of Science). It is important to read the publicationsfrom these sources and attend conferences where theauthors and commissioners of these reports are keynote

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12 Getting Started in the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning

speakers. Studies on problems that occupy the nationaleducation consciousness are more likely to get funded andpublished.

Supervising Research Students

The ability of an SFES to attract research students will dif-fer, depending on the institutional environment and thegeneral educational structure of the country. In the US, forexample, where a PhD in SoTL can lead to a faculty posi-tion, it is relatively common to see graduate students com-pleting education-related projects in science departments.In many other countries (including Australia) SFES posi-tions are generally won only by candidates who hold a PhDgained at the bench or in the field, not by graduates in sci-ence education. This reality, combined with the relative“newness” of SoTL in science, means that higher-degreecandidates in science education are unusual outside theUS. One has to carefully consider whether a higher degreein SoTL is in the best interests of a student [6] and asksome tough questions. Why does the student want to do aSoTL project? Is it possible to combine the project withsome wet-lab or field experience to increase the graduate’semployability? Does the potential student understand thattheir employment prospects will be different to the pros-pects for a student who does a bench or field project fortheir graduate work? Do course codes or programs of studythat can accommodate the student already exist at theenrolling institution, or will a change in institutional policybe required for the student to enroll?

The SFES who wants to supervise a student may haveto trailblaze. In this situation it is probably in the student’sbest interest to find them a co-supervisor who has experi-ence with education projects.

Assessing the Value of a Project and Justifying it to Col-

leagues and Superiors

Not every SoTL project is going to be a good one. It pays tobe strategic and leave weak, overly difficult, or uninspiringprojects for other pursuits that are more productive andwhich garner more support and attention.

Most universities and colleges (and their departments)publish strategic plans for Teaching and Learning. A politi-cally-savvy SFES should read these documents and visiblyalign their work to them. Projects that are seen as valuableby those in power are more likely to be supported withtime and money. Any project that is worth academic timeshould have clear value and novelty as a scholarly enter-prise. The best projects also have clear benefits for the stu-dents involved, for the host institution, and for the educa-tion community at large.

Final NotesSoTL is hard, time-consuming work that can be slow toyield papers. In addition, most education journals have lowcitation rates. This means the metrics that “count” in sci-

ence can be difficult for an SFES to fulfill, and we mustlook elsewhere for justification of our research streams.

Part of the “value” of SoTL is that it has far-reachingimplications. It can affect and address academic and stu-dent behavior, educational design and assessment, profes-sional development offerings, institutional structures, andeducational policy—often far beyond the discipline itself.SoTL researchers who are poorly understood within theirworkplace may need to work harder to justify theirresearch, promote the implications of their work, andmaintain the rigor of their findings. They should alwaysremember, however, that their research can produce rigor-ously analyzed data and provide powerful support for theuse (or removal) of teaching activities and practices.

Researching the outcomes of teaching and learning isan essentially “scientific” process, which should come natu-rally to logical research scientists. In our experience, how-ever, finding one’s own pathway in SoTL, and convincingskeptical colleagues that SoTL belongs in a science depart-ment, are not simple tasks.

SoTL takes time, money, dedication, and expertise, butin an era where universities are being asked to justify theircurricula, their graduate outcomes, and even their ownbricks-and-mortar existence, quality SoTL is essential. Thework of SoTL researchers is an important weapon in thefight against funding cuts and deprofessionalization of theacademic teaching workforce. Its ultimate value lies, how-ever, in its power to help us build and maintain the besteducational outcomes for all of our students, and hence forsociety at large [55].

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