Building Bridges
Science Education at Bryn Mawr College

Tri-College Science Teaching Symposium
May 8, 2001
Bryn Mawr College
 
   

 

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Teaching Matters

SCIENCE TEACHING IN THE TRI-COLLEGE COMMUNITY

Quantitative Skills Tutorial

      

Small Group Discussion
Making Large Classes Interactive

Facilitated by by Michelle Francl, Department of Chemistry, Bryn Mawr College

  • Why should we attempt to make large classes interactive?
    • Help students maintain focus
    • Address the needs of different subsets of students
    • Increase feedback for instructor
    • Keep lectures effective and interesting

     

  • Challenges/Strategies
    • Short breaks for group work allow simultaneous active work and content coverage
    • Fewer examples worked by teacher complemented by student group activities
    • Use the beginning and ending of class time more effectively by engaging students in group activities
    • Use notecards to gauge students level of understanding and/or engagement
    • End-of-class wrap-up or review activities
    • Engage students before they arrive in class
      • Have them collect data to share with classmates
      • Have groups of students write review questions/problems (or exam questions!) and provide answers to same

  • The Web
    • Track use of course web sites
    • Share course web sites with colleagues
    • Provide simulations and movies for out-of-class viewing