CWSEI

Setting class norms about behavior during group activities

An activity to establish norms for group discussions in class. This is done on the first day of class and serves two different beneficial purposes. First, it is a good first-group-activity, as the answer is nontrivial, and it is something where everyone feels equally qualified to contribute. Second and most importantly, it has the class establish norms for behavior in group work. (1 page)

Observation Guide for the Active-learning Classroom

This guide was created by Carl Wieman to facilitate the observation of classes incorporating active learning. The observer(s) might be other faculty, postdocs, or graduate students with the purpose of learning about implementation of active learning, or to provide feedback to the instructor. It can also serve as a guide for instructors on their design and implementation of active learning activities. It is intended to apply to modest size class, 6 to 80 or so, where students can work in groups with the instructor circulating around them, often with TA helping.

A better way to do in-class review

For many years, I used to spend a lecture or two going over material I expected most students would have previously seen, but likely had forgotten to some extent. Then I actually collected data on the effectiveness of this approach and was surprised to find out that it was less than useless. I subsequently found a much better method for reviewing. (1 page; September 2016)

Creating good homework problems (and grading them)

This 2-pager gives tips on how to create effective homework problems. The essential features for making homework a major contributor to student learning are: (1) there is challenging and prolonged practice of the components of expert thinking the student is to learn, (2) the student is motivated to invest the necessary time and effort, and (3) the student gets feedback on their practice that gives them guidance as to how they can improve. (2 pages; updated August 2016)

Pages