Teaching and Learning STEM

Rethink traditional teaching methods to improve student learning and retention in STEM Educational research has repeatedly shown that compared to traditional teacher-centered instruction, certain learner-centered methods lead to improved learning outcomes, greater development of critical high-level skills, and increased retention in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines. Teaching and Learning STEM presents a trove of practical research-based strategies for designing and teaching STEM courses at the university, community college, and high school levels. The book draws on the authors' extensive backgrounds and decades of experience in STEM education and faculty development. Its engaging and well-illustrated descriptions will equip you to implement the strategies in your courses and to deal effectively with problems (including student resistance) that might occur in the implementation. The book will help you: Plan and conduct class sessions in which students are actively engaged, no matter how large the class is Make good use of technology in face-to-face, online, and hybrid courses and flipped classrooms Assess how well students are acquiring the knowledge, skills, and conceptual understanding the course is designed to teach Help students develop expert problem-solving skills and skills in communication, creative thinking, critical thinking, high-performance teamwork, and self-directed learning Meet the learning needs of STEM students with a broad diversity of attributes and backgrounds The strategies presented in Teaching and Learning STEM don't require revolutionary time-intensive changes in your teaching, but rather a gradual integration of traditional and new methods. The result will be continual improvement in your teaching and your students' learning. More information about Teaching and Learning STEM can be found at educationdesignsinc.com/book including its preface, foreword, table of contents, first chapter, a reading guide, and reviews in 10 prominent STEM education journals.

Rethink traditional teaching methods to improve student learning and retention in STEMEducational research has repeatedly shown that compared to traditional teacher-centered instruction, certain learner-centered methods lead to improved learning outcomes, greater development of critical high-level skills, and increased retention in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) disciplines.Teaching and Learning STEM presents a trove of practical research-based strategies for designing and teaching STEM courses at the university, community college, and high school levels. The book draws on the authors' extensive backgrounds and decades of experience in STEM education and faculty development. Its engaging and well-illustrated descriptions will equip you to implement the strategies in your courses and to deal effectively with problems (including student resistance) that might occur in the implementation. The book will help you:* Plan and conduct class sessions in which students are actively engaged, no matter how large the class is* Make good use of technology in face-to-face, online, and hybrid courses and flipped classrooms* Assess how well students are acquiring the knowledge, skills, and conceptual understanding the course is designed to teach* Help students develop expert problem-solving skills and skills in communication, creative thinking, critical thinking, high-performance teamwork, and self-directed learning* Meet the learning needs of STEM students with a broad diversity of attributes and backgroundsThe strategies presented in Teaching and Learning STEM don't require revolutionary time-intensive changes in your teaching, but rather a gradual integration of traditional and new methods. The result will be continual improvement in your teaching and your students' learning.More information about Teaching and Learning STEM can be found ateducationdesignsinc.com/bookincluding its preface, foreword, table of contents, first chapter, a reading guide, and reviews in 10 prominent STEM education journals.

The Authors iiiTables, Figures, and Exhibits xiForeword xvPreface xvii1 Introduction to college teaching 11.0 Welcome to the university, there's your office, good luck 11.1 Making learning happen 21.2 Learner-centered teaching: Definition, warning, and reassurance 51.3 What's in this book? 71.4 How to use the book 9PART ONE Designing coursesInterlude. What do they need to know? 132 Learning objectives: A foundation of effective teaching 172.0 Introduction 172.1 Writing and using course learning objectives 192.2 Bloom's taxonomy of educational objectives 302.3 Addressing course prerequisites and program outcomes 342.4 Ideas to take away 362.5 Try this in your course 37Interlude. Good cop/bad cop: Embracing contraries in teaching 393 Planning courses 413.0 Introduction 413.1 Three steps to disaster, or, how not to approach course preparation 423.2 A rational approach to course preparation and redesign 433.3 Choosing a course text or content delivery system 473.4 Formulating a course grading policy 473.5 Writing a syllabus 513.6 The critical first week 523.7 Ideas to take away 633.8 Try this in your course 63Interlude. How to write class session plans (or anything else) 654 Planning class sessions 674.0 Introduction 674.1 Avoid common planning errors 694.2 What's in a class session plan? 694.3 Promote long-term memory storage, retrieval, and transfer 704.4 Two cornerstones of effective class sessions 744.5 Plan good questions and activities 764.6 Don't turn classes into slide shows and verbal avalanches 784.7 Use handouts with gaps 814.8 Planning undergraduate laboratory courses 844.9 Ideas to take away 864.10 Try this in your course 87PART TWO Teaching courses5 Elements of effective instruction 915.0 Introduction 915.1 Make class sessions effective 925.2 Make pre-class assignments effective 965.3 Don't be a slave to your session plans 995.4 Keep improving your teaching 1005.5 Ideas to take away 1045.6 Try this in your course 104Interlude. Meet your students: Aisha and Rachel 1076 Active learning 1116.0 Introduction 1116.1 What is active learning? 1126.2 Structures and formats of activities 1146.3 How well does active learning work? Why does it work? 1166.4 Active learning for problem solving 1196.5 Common active learning mistakes 1226.6 Common active learning concerns 1256.7 Active learning in recitations and flipped classrooms 1286.8 Ideas to take away 1286.9 Try this in your course 129Interlude. Is technology a friend or foe of learning? 1317 Teaching with technology 1357.0 Introduction 1357.1 Instructional technology tools 1357.2 Learning benefits of technology 1377.3 Setting up communications 1397.4 Integrating technology into instruction 1417.5 Blended learning and flipped classrooms 1427.6 Online courses 1467.7 Ideas to take away 1497.8 Try this in your course 149Interlude. Meet your students: Michelle, Ryan, and Alex 1518 Evaluating knowledge, skills, and understanding 1558.0 Introduction 1558.1 Multiple-choice and short-answer questions 1568.2 Evaluating and promoting conceptual understanding 1608.3 Evaluating problem-solving skills 1648.4 Evaluating reports and presentations 1758.5 Ideas to take away 1828.6 Try this in your course 183PART THREE Facilitating skill developmentInterlude. Meet your students: Stan and Nathan 1879 Problem-solving skills 1899.0 Introduction 1899.1 The long, steep path from novice to expert 1909.2 Strategies for teaching expert problem-solving skills 1939.3 A structure for complex problem solving 2009.4 Problem-based learning 2079.5 Ideas to take away 2089.6 Try this in your course 209Interlude. Meet your students: Dave, Megan, and Roberto 21310 Professional skills 21710.0 Introduction 21710.1 How can professional skills be developed 21810.2 Communication skills 22110.3 Creative thinking skills 22210.4 Critical thinking skills 23010.5 Self-directed learning skills 23510.6 Project-based learning 23810.7 Creating a supportive environment for professional skill development 23910.8 Ideas to take away 24110.9 Try this in your course 242Interlude. Sermons for grumpy campers 24311 Teamwork skills 24511.0 Introduction 24511.1 Cooperative learning 24611.2 How should teams be formed? 24811.3 What can teams be asked to do? 25211.4 Turning student groups into high-performance teams 25511.5 Dealing with difficulties 26311.6 Ideas to take away 26811.7 Try this in your course 26912 Learner-centered teaching revisited 27112.0 Introduction 27112.1 Aspects of student diversity 27212.2 Inductive teaching and learning 27912.3 Learner-centered teaching strategies 28312.4 Last words 285References 287Index 311