Turning a Disciplinary Lens to Teaching and Learning

Preparing Tomorrow’s Professionals for a Complex World

The integrity of the discipline leads to a sense of what is best for the students. The community expects no less from us; and we expect no less from ourselves.” Lee Shulman

Whitney M. Schlegel, Biology Department, Indiana University Bloomington

Applying Backward Design Principles (Wiggins and McTighe, 1998)• What will a student who

completes this course (Human Physiology) be able to do? What do they “look like”?(knowledge, skills, ethic)

• How will you know what the student has learned? (assessments)

• How will you scaffold the learning environment to support your learning objectives and goals? (pedagogy)

Team-Based Learning

• How will team-based learning explicitly facilitate your course/disciplinary learning outcomes?

• What do you want student teams to accomplish and specifically understand about team work?

• How will you make your team learning goals explicit to students?

• How will you know if students have met your goals for team work?

Team-Based Learning• How will you use the

physical learning environment to facilitate your desired learning outcomes with a team-based pedagogy?

Student Centered LearningTheory and Practice

Select Theoretical Constructs that Support Features of the Learning Environment in PhysiologyIntellectual Development - Scaffolded Learning (Perry, 1970)Context-Dependent - Case-Based Learning (Herreid, 2007)Socially Mediated - Team-Based Learning (Michaelson et al., 2002)

What theoretical frames and evidence exist to support your teaching practice and learning goals?

Scholarly Approach to Teaching Innovation

“Intellectual and Ethical Development” (Perry, 1970)From an authority-driven and dualistic view of knowledge…

toRecognition of complexity and evidence-based decision-making and reflective thinking with changing answers and uncertainty.

Student Centered LearningTheory and Practice

Backward Design

Scaffolding

Collaborative and Contextual LearningBuild instruction around complex problemsMake learning experiences as authentic as possibleGuide students to understand and apply central conceptsOffer opportunities to apply learning to new contexts

Student Centered LearningTheory and Practice

AAC&U LEAP Initiative

P451: Integrative Human Physiology (4 cr)

• Lecture/Lab• Senior Level • Biology Majors• Considered a Capstone Course in the Major

-Highly Motivated-Extremely Competitive-Exclusively Junior/ Senior, Pre-Professional-Science (Biology) Majors-Gifted at Memorization

THE STUDENTS?

PROCESSCONTENT

STUDENT LEARNING

HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY

TEAM-BASED CASE-BASED

HOMEOSTASIS

INTERNAL ENVIRONMENTSKILLS

PROBLEM-SOLVINGCOMMUNICATIONEVIDENCE-BASED

REASONING

DISCIPLINARY THINKERDISCIPLINARY PROFESSIONAL

ORGAN SYSTEMS

• Students are placed in teams of 5 at the start of the semester

• Teams are randomly assigned and controlled for gender only.

TEAM-BASED LEARNINGENVIRONMENT

STUDENT SEMESTER TEAMS

• Case Study Discussion

• Laboratory Exercises

• Lab Reports• Case Study

Reports• Electronic

Portfolio• Exams• Inquiry Project

Time Management in the Team-Based and Case-Based

Learning EnvironmentIn Class• Mini-Lectures• Team Case

work• Whole Class

Case Work – Grand Rounds

• Peer Review• Exams

Outside Class• Team Lab Reports• Team Case Reports• Preparation for

Class and Exams• Evaluation and

Reflection• Team E-Chart• Inquiry Project

LISTENING TO THE STUDENT

VOICE

• I am more motivated than my group members.

• My group will hinder my ability to get the grade I want in this course.

• I have a better science background than my group members.

• My schedule is too busy to try to study with other people. I study much better on my own.

Recognize Peers But Do Not Know Names…Students do not know how to work in teams!

Question?Observation: My Students Do Not Necessarily Know How To Intellectually Engage In Focused, Discipline-Based Discussion within Small Groups Comprised of Their Peers.

Can I help students to learn how to work collaboratively and guide their own learning in the discipline of physiology and science more broadly using a case-based and team-based learning environment?

How will I know if I have enhanced their learning and specifically their ability to critically evaluate evidence/data and employ evidence-based reasoning to solve complex, unstructured problems?

SEMESTER EXAMS• Four Semester exams, case-based and all

objective format, are designed to examine students' ability to apply their problem-solving, critical thinking, and team skills to organ system physiology.

• Semester exams are given during a 2-hour class period. – Hour 1: Individual– Hour 2: Team 25 questions on exam

Each question: 2 points Individual exam: 50 pts** Team exam: 50 pts**

Total Possible Points: 100 points

Engage Students In Reflective Practice

• Team• Peer

Evaluation

Focus on Group Process(and Self)

Focus on Peer Evaluation (and Self)

A Brief HistoryHuman Physiology [P431] - 4 credit hours

‘Team-Taught’ Lecture-Lab [Fall 1998 - Spring 2001]

One Instructor Lecture-Lab, Team-Based, Case-Based with Peer Evaluation [Fall 2001 - Spring 2003]

One Instructor Lecture-Lab, Team-Based, Case-Based with Peer Evaluation and Team History Portfolio and Presentation [Fall 2003 - Fall 2005]Miningthe Data

The structured team exam model with 5-student semester teams and a peer evaluation and reflective team process contributed to a 9% increase on the individual comprehensive final exam over prior semesters.

Team Learning and Exams

There are 12 teams of 5. I = Individual T = Team

Semester Exam Performance

Focusing My Inquiry

How are students learning in teams and how do they understand this learning?

-Team and Peer Review Process-Team E-Chart-Documented Problem Solving in

Class

• Team 10– Developed

collaborative strategy and understanding late in the semester.

– “I”– Did not reflect upon

the application of experience beyond the immediate situation.

Student Learning Success

• Team 5– Developed

collaborative strategy and understanding early in the semester.

– “We”– Reflected upon

the application of their experience beyond the immediate situation.

Early team development and the ability to envision future applications of lessons learned from the collaborative process may be critical to team success in this collaborative learning environment.

Student Learning Success

Directions This Work Has Taken