making an impact: building transportable and sustainable projects (formerly dissemination) webinar 4...
TRANSCRIPT
Making an Impact: Building Transportable and
Sustainable Projects(formerly Dissemination)
Webinar 4 of theTransforming Undergraduate Education in Science, Technology,
Engineering and Mathematics Series
Handout 1 1
Don Millard [email protected]& John Yu [email protected]
April 17, 2012
Louis Everett [email protected]& Susan Finger [email protected]
April 18, 2012
Before you leave, please complete the assessment survey:
http://www.nsflsu.com
Before you leave the Webinar!
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Most of the information presented in this workshop represents the presenters’ opinions and not an official NSF position.
Local facilitators will provide the link to the workshop slides at the completion of the webinar.
Participants may ask questions by “raising their virtual hand” during a question session. We will call on selected sites and enable their microphone so that the question can be asked.
Responses will be collected from a few sites at the end of each Exercise. At the start of the Exercise, we will identify these sites in the Chat Box and then call on them one at a time to provide their responses.
Important Notes
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Learning must build on prior knowledge ◦ Some knowledge correct ◦ Some knowledge incorrect – Misconceptions
Learning is ◦ Connecting new knowledge to prior knowledge◦ Correcting misconceptions
Learning requires engagement◦ Actively recalling prior knowledge◦ Sharing new knowledge◦ Forming a new understanding
Framework for the Session
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Effective learning activities ◦ Recall prior knowledge -- actively, explicitly◦ Connect new concepts to existing ones◦ Challenge and alter misconceptions
Active & collaborative processes◦ Think individually◦ Share with partner◦ Report to local and virtual groups ◦ Learn from program directors’ responses
Preliminary Comments
Active & Collaborative Learning
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Coordinate the local activities
Watch the time◦Allow for think, share, and report phases◦Reconvene on time -- 1 min warning ◦ With one minute warning, refer to Chat Box to see if you will be
asked for a response
Ensure the individual think phase is devoted to thinking quietly and not talking
Coordinate the asking of questions by local participants and reporting local responses to exercises
Facilitator’s Duties
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The session will enable you to design transportable and sustainable engineering and computer science education projects, based on an understanding of how faculty make decisions about their teaching.
Goal for the Transportable and Sustainable Projects Session
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After the session, participants should be able to: Discuss the importance of project transportability ◦ Transfer or transmission model◦ Readiness Change model◦ Rational Faculty Model
Discuss key components of institutionalization at home institution ◦ Structural and cultural considerations
Discuss types of transportability and sustainability approaches◦ Enabling, Facilitating, Encouraging, Collaborating◦ Greater emphasis on designing for transportability than in the past
Session Outcomes
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Activity
Your Instructional Change Experience
Reflect on a specific change you have made in your teaching (e.g., active learning, concept inventory, online modules, or any other changes)
◦ How did you first find out about it? ◦ What convinced you to try it? ◦ What aspects of the innovation (would have) made it easy to adopt? ◦ What support from others (would have) made it easy to implement?
Exercise ---- 6 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Share with a partner ----- ~2 min ◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 6 min Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local facilitators report to virtual group
With one minute warning, look at Chat Box to see if you will be asked for a response
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PDs’ Response
Your Instructional Change Experience
Usually you have a specific problem to solve You want to adapt or experiment with the
change It shouldn’t be too rigid or complicated It should be compatible with your students,
department, academic term, IT systems You need different information at different times◦Evidence of student learning, assessment data◦Advice on how to implement◦Help processing “failures” and negative student reactions
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Your Instructional Change Experience
Reflect on your own experience to understand your audience and design a plan to ensure others will use your materials
What motivates you to change can◦ Inspire the need for a project◦ Inspire the project transportability and institutionalization◦Also inspires others to use your materials and approach
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Common Approach to STEM Educational Change
Develop and disseminate model◦Transfer or transmission model
Developer (change agent)◦Creates instructional materials and strategies
Significant effort Research-based
◦Tries to convince other faculty to use them Postings, presentations, publications Short, one-time workshops
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Some Problems with Develop-then-Disseminate Model
Faculty may need more than one exposure to materials/ideas
Importance of local factors may be overlooked Faculty are likely to need ongoing support when
adopting materials of others
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Change Takes Time
Sequential change models◦ Pre-awareness – Willing to read a one-pager◦ Awareness – Willing to read longer summaries◦ Interest – Willing to read journal or conference publication◦ Search – Willing to attend a 2-4 hr workshop◦ Decision – Willing to attend a 1-2 day workshop◦ Action – Willing to implement ◦ Trial period◦ Decision to continue or discard
Rogers, Diffusion of Innovations, 1995Froyd, FIE, 2001
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Change Takes Time
Faculty cannot be moved from Pre-awareness to Action with a single workshop
Change is not an event – it is a process
Froyd, FIE, 2001
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A More Adapatable Approach
Matched to how faculty members actually change Dancy and Henderson’s Rational Faculty Model◦ Provide easily modifiable material
Users will customize◦ Provide research ideas with material
Users understand the rationale If not, risk inappropriate adaptation, e.g., clickers for
attendance◦ Make it clear what aspects will transfer under what
conditions Identify critical elements
◦ Recommend modification for different situations
Dancy and Henderson, NRC Workshop Report, 2008
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Can’t transform undergraduate education if TUES projects are not sustained at the home institution after NSF funding ends
This process is called institutionalization“when an innovation or program is fully integrated into an
organization’s structure”
Sustaining TUES Projects
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Curry, ASHE Report, 1992
Activity
Barriers to Institutionalization What are some common reasons an education
project fails to be institutionalized after NSF funding ends?
Exercise ---- 6 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Share with a partner ----- ~2 min ◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 6 min Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local
facilitators report to virtual group
With one minute warning, look at Chat Box to see if you will be asked for a response
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Enthusiasm wanes after grant ends Money unavailable for personnel, supplies, travel, training, etc. PI moves on
◦ Other teaching assignments◦ Administrative responsibilities◦ Moves to another institution
Multiple/new instructors less comfortable with format Specially trained TAs graduate Technology changes (equipment outdated, new computers/software) Budget cuts reduce offerings of elective courses Changes to curriculum impact student demand Administrators unaware or not convinced of value, may move to other
positions or change priorities
PDs’ Response
Barriers to Institutionalization
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Not just about money
Two aspects◦Structural
policies, curriculum, teaching load/assignments◦Cultural
becomes part of normal expectations of how we educate students (in topic X)
The most successful efforts address both structural and cultural
Institutionalization/ Sustainability
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Activity
Institutionalization For an idea you are considering for a TUES
proposal, what institutionalization strategies can you pursue that address structural and cultural aspects?
Exercise ---- 6 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Share with a partner ----- ~2 min ◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 6 min Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local
facilitators report to virtual group
With one minute warning, look at Chat Box to see if you will be asked for a response
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State learning outcomes and align to curricula and values Collect and distribute convincing evaluation data Publicize successes to deans, chairs, faculty and teaching
assistants Discuss at faculty and curriculum committee meetings Adapt it to work for all students, faculty, departments (as
appropriate) Recruit other faculty to learn about it and use it in their classes
◦ Provide data, advice, incentives and moral support
Work to secure resources as needed: lab space, staff support Work to integrate it into curricula (as appropriate)
PDs’ Response
Institutionalization
22Handout 3
Questions
“Hold-up your virtual hand” and you will be called upon after we unmute your mike.
BREAK15 min
BREAK1 min warning
Need for Transportability Most NSF education programs require project
transportability (broader impact, dissemination) Example –Review criteria for TUES Program include:
Projects should produce exemplary materials, processes, or models that can be adopted by other sites
Projects should involve a significant effort aimed at facilitating adaptation at other sites
Projects should have the potential to contribute to a paradigm shift in undergraduate STEM education
In this section we discuss how to address these criteria in a proposal or project
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Transportability strategies
As you work on your project (or develop your proposal) from the very beginning throughout the entire project think about:
Encouraging others◦ Make others aware of and interested in your materials or approach
Facilitating others◦ Help others use your materials or approach
Enabling others◦ Designing your materials so that others can use them
Collaborating with others◦ Engage others in improving your materials or approach
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The next activities will help you understand what each of these means
Activity
Encouraging How do you make others aware of and interested in your materials?
Exercise ---- 6 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Share with a partner ----- ~2 min ◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 6 min Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local
facilitators report to virtual group
With one minute warning, look at Chat Box to see if you will be asked for a response
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PDs’ Response Encouraging
Use a variety of strategies Post, present, and publish it Present workshops at your institution or at national meetings Make personal connections to others’ needs Post it on more widely accessed sites
◦ Connexions site (cnx.org)◦ National Instruments (ni.com)◦ NSF’s NSDL (nsdl.org)◦ Search engine optimization
Use technology◦ Videos◦ Social media (YouTube, Face Book, Google+)
Provide a Information package (a “sales brochure”)◦ Statement of need and importance, learning objectives◦ Summary of approach◦ Evaluation data, assessment evidence ◦ Stories, scenarios, advice for use and troubleshooting
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Activity
Facilitating How do you help others use your materials?
Exercise ---- 6 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Share with a partner ----- ~2 min ◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 6 min Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local
facilitators report to virtual group
With one minute warning, look at Chat Box to see if you will be asked for a response
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PDs’ Response
Facilitating Continued support◦ Organize a support group (a community of practice)◦ Virtual workshops and support group◦ Wikis◦ Series of workshops
Share evaluation instruments and processes◦ Formative as well as summative
Prepare a user’s guide◦ Pitfalls◦ Alternate approaches◦ Video demonstrations
Use “open source” approach
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Activity
Enabling What should you think about when developing your materials so that the final product can be used by others?
Exercise ---- 6 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Share with a partner ----- ~2 min ◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 6 min Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local
facilitators report to virtual group
With one minute warning, look at Chat Box to see if you will be asked for a response
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PDs’ Response
Enabling Build in flexibility, e.g. software platforms Consider how the approach could be used:
◦ In other curricular models, other courses, or other disciplines◦ With other teaching styles
State clearly the expected learning outcomes and link to needs Minimize special equipment needs and implementation cost, consider
virtual approaches Collect convincing evaluation data Summarize the approach’s rationale (the research-base, false starts, etc.)
in a simple story Provide options for gradual scale up Recruit a few faculty at other sites that teach the course (potential future
users) and ask them periodically to consider◦ How well the approach fits their course and their style◦ How could it be made more compatible◦ What data would convince them
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Activity
CollaboratingHow do you engage others in designing and
developing your materials?
Exercise ---- 6 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Share with a partner ----- ~2 min ◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 6 min Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local
facilitators report to virtual group
With one minute warning, look at Chat Box to see if you will be asked for a response
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PDs’ Response
Collaborating Share control◦ Allow others to develop pieces of the material◦ Enable partners to contribute to the posted material◦ Identify new partners at conferences and workshops◦ Give credit to collaborators
Develop a common evaluation process and data base
Build in review and improvements at key points Develop group approaches for engaging and
facilitating others Include collaborators as Co-PIs, advisory board, etc.
35Handout 7
Does your proposal or your project have a strong (sustainable, transportable) dissemination plan?
How can you improve it?
Take ---- 4 min◦ Think individually -------- ~2 min◦ Report in local group ---- ~2 min
Watch time and reconvene after 4 min
Use THINK time to think – no discussion, Selected local facilitators report to virtual group
Activity
Final Reflection
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References
Curry, B.K., (1992). Instituting Enduring Innovations: Achieving Continuity of Change in Higher Education. ASHE-ERIC Higher Education Report No. 7
Dancy, M.H. and Henderson, J.C. (2008). Barriers and Promises in STEM Reform. Commissioned paper presented at NRC workshop on Evidence on Selected Promising Practices in Undergraduate Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Education, Washington, DC. Retrieved from http://www7.nationalacademies.org/bose/Dancy_Henderson_CommissionedPaper.pdf.
Froyd, J.E., “Developing a Dissemination Plan,” Proceedings, 2001 ASEE/IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference.
Rogers, E. (1995). Diffusion of Innovations.
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Questions
Hold up your “virtual hand” to ask a question.
Proposal & Award Policies & Procedures Guidehttp://www.nsf.gov/pubs/policydocs/pappguide/nsf11001/
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Please complete the assessment survey-go to: http://www.nsflsu.com
Thanks for your participation!
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