Bill Buskist of Auburn University--A Faculty Consultant for GRAD 980
GRAD 980 Preparing to Teach a
Psychology Course - 2 credits
Professors
Dr. James Korn, Professor of Psychology
Saint Louis University
http://pages.slu.edu/faculty/kornjh/index.html
Dr. Paul Presson, Associate Professor of Psychology
Westminster College
http://www.westminstercollege.edu/apps/faculty/detail.cfm?unit=1294145
Dr. Victor Benassi, Professor of Psychology
University of New Hampshire
http://www.unh.edu/psychology/faculty/fac_benassi.htm
Entirely Web-based Course (no campus attendance)
Course Begins on June 1 and ends on July 22
This course will be offered in an online education format . There will be no class meetings at the University of New Hampshire. The course will be conducted using Blackboard © —using an asynchronous web-based format.
This graduate course will be offered by the Academic Program in College Teaching of the Graduate School at the University of New Hampshire in cooperation with the UNH Department of Psychology, the Center for Teaching Excellence, and UNH Summer Session. For details, see /teaching-excellence/resources/Institute05-1.htm .
Course Description
Preparation for teaching in Psychology. Examination of issues and models involving course design and interaction with students. Products from the course will include a complete course syllabus, a preliminary statement of teaching philosophy, and the first teaching module of a course. 2 credits. Letter grade assigned.
All of the materials and Internet addresses needed for the course will be posted on the GRAD 980 Blackboard site. That is, no additional materials we need to be purchased or acquired.
Course Objectives
To successfully complete GRAD 980, the student will:
• Develop a philosophy of teaching statement and apply it to a course design.
• Design and develop a comprehensive syllabus for a course in psychology that includes a statement of learning objectives, a testing and grading plan, a description of teaching/learning activities and assignments, reading assignments, and textbook adoption. This protocol for a specific course will reflect best practices related to teaching and student learning.
• Read and write about contemporary theory, research, and practice pertaining to such topics as course design, test construction, grading practices, and representative teaching approaches.
• Design and develop a course-specific teaching module that describes the content to be covered in a specific section of a course. The teaching module will include a statement of objectives for the unit, information on the resources that will be required to teach the unit, general and detailed outlines of the content included in the unit, presentation of all exam items and description of all assignments, and information on the materials to be used (e.g., handouts, overheads, PowerPoint outlines).
• Design a course evaluation plan. These methods will provide the instructor with feedback needed to analyze and evaluate the initial design and teaching experience for purposes of improvement.
Course Overview
The course includes five (5) units. Each unit is designed to equip the student with specific competencies based upon course objectives.
Unit A: Developing a Philosophy of Teaching
Students develop a philosophy of teaching statement. Readings are assigned to provide background and context.
Unit B: Testing and Grading
Successful grading systems accomplish many objectives. First and foremost, grading systems must be based on a reliable and valid assessment of student learning. Grading systems also may elicit student motivation to excel. Multiple approaches to evaluating learning are considered. Students present an initial design of a testing and grading system to be refined in Unit E.
Unit C: The Syllabus
The syllabus is the backbone of any successful course. It describes the course and provides students with a formal presentation and discussion of expectations. Constructed to facilitate student understanding, the syllabus establishes the framework for a course. Best practices related to syllabus construction are examined. Students present an initial draft of a course syllabus to be refined in Unit E.
Unit D: Interacting with Students
Teaching involves an intense interaction between instructor and student. Students consider several issues associated with many aspects of interacting with students, including the first day of class, professional protocols, etc. Students develop a course/instructor evaluation plan.
Unit E: Teaching Module
This unit requires each student to develop a teaching module for a specific course. The content module normally covers a topic to be addressed in 3 to 6 classes and describes in detail the content to be covered, planned teaching approaches, and evaluation approaches used to assess student learning. In addition to submitting your module to the instructor for review and comment, you will submit the final version of your course syllabus at the end of the course.
Course Format
This course consists of group (class) discussions on Blackboard and individually prepared and submitted assignments. The course instructors will provide detailed feedback on all course-related work. Each student will submit her/his individual assignments to one of the course instructors who will, in turn, provide individual feedback to students. We will let you know which instructor with whom you will be working.
Grading Criteria
Final grades in the course will be determined by the instructors based on the quality of a student's work.
To receive a grade of A in the course, students will:
• Complete assignments on time.
• Respond in full to all instructor feedback.
• Meet the criteria for discussion postings.
• Submit well-written work. Quality of writing is important for written assignments and responses to feedback, but less so for discussion postings.
Grades will be lowered (e.g., A-, B+, B, B-) for work that is late, incomplete, and of poor quality. Notify your instructor of illness, family emergencies, or other reasons that may justify lateness.
Society for the Teaching of Psychology, APA, and APS
The Society for the Teaching of Psychology maintains a website on all kinds of issues related to teaching and learning in psychology. We strongly recommend that you save the URL to the site in your Favorites ( http://teachpsych.lemoyne.edu/teachpsych/div/divindex.html ). You may also wish to join the Society's PsychTeacher Discussion List . To do so, go to the following site and following a few simple steps: http://teachpsych.lemoyne.edu/teachpsych/div/psychteacher.html . Finally, take a look at the Essays from E-Excellence published by the Society. You may access these at http://teachpsych.lemoyne.edu/teachpsych/eit/index.html .
The American Psychological Association ( http://www.apa.org/ed/ ) and the American Psychological Society ( http://www.psychologicalscience.org/teaching/index.cfm ) also provide a lot of information on teaching and learning.
Discussion Board Postings
For all Discussion Board assignments, each student must initiate at least one posting (new idea), respond to at least one other posting, and give a summary response to her/his initial posting, i.e., a minimum of three postings. Participation in on-line discussions is one of our criteria for grading.
Response to Feedback
You may be asked to prepare and submit a revision of your work on certain assignments. When you complete your responses to instructor feedback, please submit the revised document via the Drop Box. Label the file a s follows: Yourlastname.Assign#.revise.doc . Please identify the changes you made (e.g., highlighting them in read and/or including a note at the beginning of the assignment indicating the nature of the revisions).
Course Assignments
Assignment 1: Writing the first draft of a teaching philosophy ( Due June 6; response to initial feedback by June 13)
• Write the first draft of your philosophy before you complete the Teaching Goals Inventory. Your instructor will provide a framework for writing this draft. After you receive feedback on your teaching philosophy statement, you will be asked to respond to that feedback with a revised draft.
Reading:
Korn, J. H. (2003, July). Writing a philosophy of teaching. Excellence in Teaching , 5.
• After you write your teaching philosophy, complete the Teaching Goals Inventory: http://www.uiowa.edu/~centeach/t g i/bo o k.html . Choose the course for which you will be preparing the teaching module (Assignment 5) and base your ratings on that course.
• After you finish taking the TGI and review the results, write a brief piece (1-2 double-spaced pages) that addresses what you learned about your goals for this course. Were there any surprises? In your written piece, reproduce the summary information that appears at the very beginning of the TGI Report (This is the summary information on the Six TGI Clusters). Be sure to list the name of the course about which you completed the TGI and provide some information about the course (e.g., level; who will be the students).
• Finally, relate the TGI results to your teaching philosophy.
Your writing assignment must include the following information in the upper left-hand corner of the first page:
Your Name
Assignment #
Date Assignment Submitted
Save your writing assignment as follows: Yourlastname.Assign1.doc . If you use WORD as your word processing program, you're all set. If not, please save your work as a text file.
Please send your assignment to the course instructor via the "Digital Drop Box" feature of Blackboard. Click on the "Tools" button at your Blackboard main page. At the "Add File to DropBox," locate the file you are going to send to me by clicking the "Browse" button at "File to Upload." Your file will be located somewhere on your computer. After you upload the file, type Assignment One at "Name of Link to File." Finally, send the file to the instructor.
This assignment is due in the Instructor's "Digital Drop Box" by June 6 .
Assignment 2: Testing and Grading (Due June 10)
Read the material on Testing and Grading. Complete the Discussion Assignment posted on Blackboard ( Testing and Grading ). Instructions are provided with the assignment.
PLEASE NOTE: FOR THIS AND THE OTHER DISCUSSION BOARDS, YOU ARE ASKED TO PROVIDE COMMENTS ON THE POSTINGS OF YOUR CLASSMATES. IN AN EFFORT TO ASSIST ONE ANOTHER AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE, WE ASK THAT YOU PROVIDE SUBSTANTIVE COMMENTS, NOT SIMPLY SHORT RESPONSES SUCH AS “WELL DONE,” “I AGREE,” AND SO ON.
Postings should be made by June 10 .
Beyond the Discussion Assignment, there is no immediate writing assignment to go along with the reading assignment. However, when you prepare the first and final versions of your course syllabus, you are required to provide detailed information on your testing and grading systems that reflects one of the approaches described in the material on testing and grading. In addition, when you complete the required teaching module, your exam items should reflect what you learned from the written material on test construction.
Readings:
Lucy Jacobs and Clinton Chase. (1992). Developing and using tests effectively . Jossey-Bass.
John Ory and Katherine Ryan. (1993). Tips for improving testing and grading . Sage.
http://idea.ksu.edu/ (paper #s 16, 17, & 19)
Assignment 3: The Syllabus (Due June 17; response to feedback by June 23)
Read the material on The Syllabus provided in Course Documents. Prepare a complete first draft of a syllabus for the course for which you will be preparing teaching modules. You will be provided feedback on the syllabus and asked to respond to that feedback by June 23.
In addition, write a brief narrative statement that relates your syllabus to the draft of your philosophy statement. This will serve as rationale for your course design. This statement should reveal the practical value of your philosophy and perhaps any inconsistencies between your beliefs and what you plan to do as a teacher.
Your writing assignment must include the following information in the upper left-hand corner of the first page:
Your Name
Assignment #
Date Assignment Submitted
Save your writing assignment as follows: Yourlastname.Assign3.doc . If you use WORD as your word processing program, you're all set. If not, please save your work as a text file.
Please send your assignment to the course instructor via the "Digital Drop Box" feature of Blackboard. Click on the "Tools" button at your Blackboard main page. At the "Add File to DropBox," locate the file you are going to send to me by clicking the "Browse" button at "File to Upload." Your file will be located somewhere on your computer. After you upload the file, type Assignment One at "Name of Link to File." Finally, send the file to the instructor.
This assignment is due in the Instructor's "Drop Box" by June 17 .
Readings:
James H. Korn, "Developing Your Teaching: An Institute." Revised 2003.
Michael Ryan and Gretchen Martens, Planning a college course: a guide for the graduate teaching assistant . (1989) NCRIPT&L
Barbara Gross Davis. (1993). Tools for teaching (chapter 1 and 2). Jossey-Bass.
Joseph Lowman. (1995). Mastering the techniques of teaching (2 nd Edition) (Chapter 7).
http://www.lemoyne.edu/OTRP/projectsyllabus.html
http://idea.ksu.edu/ (paper # 27)
http://college.hmco.com/instructors/ins_teachtech_foundations_module_syllabusdev.html
http://www.hcc.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/teachtip.htm#syllabus
http://www.hcc.hawaii.edu/intranet/committees/FacDevCom/guidebk/teachtip/teachtip.htm
Assignment 4: Interacting With Students (Due June 22)
Complete the Discussion Assignment posted on Blackboard ( Interacting with Students ). The topic focuses on the some issues related to pedagogy. Instructions are provided with the assignment.
Postings should be made by June 22 .
Readings:
Barbara Gross Davis. (1993). Tools for teaching (chapter 3). Jossey-Bass.
Joseph Lowman. (1995). Mastering the techniques of teaching (2 nd Edition) (Chapter 4).
Review these sites for some ideas; you are not expected to secure the references referred to in the outlines.
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/courseorg/firstmeet.htm
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/methinstruct/discussion.htm
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/methinstruct/questioning.htm
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/studentexp/classdynamics.htm
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/methinstruct/technology.htm
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/studentexp/studentexpref.htm#attendance
Assignment 5: Teaching Module (Due July 1; response to feedback by July 11)
Prepare and submit a complete teaching module for a unit of study in a course you will be teaching in the future. Follow the format described in the Benassi, Jordan, and Harrison article cited below. Review the draft sample modules that you may access via the URLs shown below.
Reading:
Victor Benassi, Elizabeth Jordan, and Loredana Maggiori Harrison. (1994). Using teaching modules to train and supervise graduate TAs. In K. Lewis, The TA experience: preparing for multiple roles . New Forum Press.
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/courseorg/teachunits.htm
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/practicum/Learning%20&%20Memory.pdf
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/practicum/Personality.pdf
http://www.unh.edu/pff/seminar/practicum/Social%20Psychology.pdf
Your assignment must include the following information in the upper left-hand corner of the first page:
Your Name
Assignment #
Date Assignment Submitted
Save your writing assignment as follows: Yourlastname.Assign5.doc . If you use WORD as your word processing program, you're all set. If not, please save your work as a text file.
Please send your assignment to the course instructor via the "Digital Drop Box" feature of Blackboard. Click on the "Tools" button at your Blackboard main page. At the "Add File to DropBox," locate the file you are going to send to me by clicking the "Browse" button at "File to Upload." Your file will be located somewhere on your computer. After you upload the file, type Assignment One at "Name of Link to File." Finally, send the file to the instructor.
This assignment is due in the Instructor's "Drop Box" by July 1 .
Assignment 6 (Due July 7; response to feedback by July 13)
Each GRAD 980 student should design a course/instructor evaluation plan. This plan might include the following components: ongoing classroom assessment, early term evaluation of course/instructor by students, peer observation, and videotaping. The data collected will provide the instructor with feedback needed to analyze and evaluate the initial design and teaching experience for purposes of improvement when the course is offered again.
Submit a 2 to 3 page overview of your plan by July 7 .
Check out some of these websites to generate ideas for developing your evaluation plan:
http://idea.ksu.edu/ (Papers # 20, 32, 36)
http://www.siue.edu/~deder/assess/catmain.html
http://depts.washington.edu/cidrweb/CATools.htm
Your assignment must include the following information in the upper left-hand corner of the first page:
Your Name
Assignment #
Date Assignment Submitted
Save your writing assignment as follows: Yourlastname.Assign6.doc . If you use WORD as your word processing program, you're all set. If not, please save your work as a text file.
Please send your assignment to the course instructor via the "Digital Drop Box" feature of Blackboard. Click on the "Tools" button at your Blackboard main page. At the "Add File to DropBox," locate the file you are going to send to me by clicking the "Browse" button at "File to Upload." Your file will be located somewhere on your computer. After you upload the file, type Assignment One at "Name of Link to File." Finally, send the file to the instructor.
Assignment 7 (Due July 15; response to feedback by July 20)
The final draft of your teaching philosophy statement is due. Please incorporate edits and suggested changes to the draft you completed earlier in the course, as appropriate. Also, now that you have completed all of the other GRAD 980 assignments, there will be some additions, deletions, or other changes you will want to make to your teaching philosophy statement to bring it up to date. Please make these final revisions and updates.
Your assignment must include the following information in the upper left-hand corner of the first page:
Your Name
Assignment #
Date Assignment Submitted
Save your writing assignment as follows: Yourlastname.Assign7.doc . If you use WORD as your word processing program, you're all set. If not, please save your work as a text file.
Please send your assignment to the course instructor via the "Digital Drop Box" feature of Blackboard. Click on the "Tools" button at your Blackboard main page. At the "Add File to DropBox," locate the file you are going to send to me by clicking the "Browse" button at "File to Upload." Your file will be located somewhere on your computer. After you upload the file, type Assignment One at "Name of Link to File." Finally, send the file to the instructor.
This assignment is due in the Instructor's "Drop Box" by July 15 .
ANY INCOMPLETE COURSEWORK SHOULD BE COMPLETED BY JULY 22, AS FINAL GRADES WILL BE SUBMITTED TO THE UNH REGISTRAR DURING THE WEEK OF JULY 25.
JULY 22: STUDENTS ASKED TO COMPLETE ANONYMOUS ONLINE COURSE EVALUATION.
Important Notice on Accessing Your Final Course Grade
All UNH and UNHM students, including off-campus and continuing education students who are registered for credit courses, are now able to access their course grades through the UNH on-line student information system, WEBCAT ( http://webcat.unh.edu ).
To log in to WEBCAT you will need your user ID (your student ID number – either Social Security Number or your assigned ID number beginning with 930) and your PIN. Your PIN is initially assigned as your birth date in the format MMDDYY. If you did not provide us with a birth date when you registered, your initial PIN is the last 6 digits of your student ID number.
The first time you log in to WEBCAT you will get a message that your PIN is expired. You must change the assigned number to a more secure 6-digit number. You will also be asked to enter a question and answer to use as identification if you forget your PIN. If you have problems logging in, please contact the Registrar's Office at (603)862-1500.
Grade reports are no longer printed and mailed to students. Grades are available on WEBCAT. Select the “Final Grades” menu item.
Using Blackboard in this Course
To use Blackboard, you need a computer with an Internet connection. You can use either Internet Explorer or Netscape, but our Computer Services unit reports that users experience fewer problems with Internet Explorer. Please note that some of the files you will have to download for course readings will take much more time via a dial-up modem than via a broadband or Ethernet connection.
Access : To access Blackboard for this course, go to: http://bl a ckbo a rd.unh.edu Click on “login.” If you don't know your username or password, or if you have any difficulty logging on to the course, or with any other aspect of Blackboard, call or e-mail Michael Lee at (603) 862-4872 or mjl@cisunix.unh.edu
Downloading files : Many of the readings for the course are saved in PDF format. In order to open these files you must have Adobe Reader installed on your computer. This free download can be accessed from the Blackboard home page. When you are doing the reading, note that you can use the “zoom” command to make the print appear larger on your screen. (Click on the magnifying glass icon on the toolbar, and then on the portion of the text you are reading)
Discussion Boards : Some of the work you will do in this course involves participating in an electronic discussion board. To participate, click on the “Communication” button on the course's main Blackboard page. Then click on “Discussion Board.” To respond to a question, click on “open new thread.” After filling in the subject box, use the text box to type in your response to the question. If you want to reply to someone else's comment, click on “reply” and then enter your response in the text box.
If you want to compose a response offline, you can do so using your word processor, and then copying and pasting the text into the text box.
NOTE : All Discussion Board responses will remain available for the duration of the course.
Submitting Written Work : When you save work that you will submit via Blackboard, always end the file name with “.doc.” For example, a file might be saved as: bboardinstructions.doc. This is especially important for Macintosh users. If you use WORD you are all set; otherwise, save files as text files.